Amritsar Sahib: The Shiromani Akali Dal (Badal) here on Sunday to keep the ante on the moral of its party workers up after the debacle of state assembly elections earlier this year has produced 48-minute documentary titled Jo Larey Deen ke Het. But the documentary prepared by SAD (Badal) went absolutely silent on the ‘Dharam Yudh Morcha’ of 1982.
Parkash-Singh-Badal [File Photo]
With reference to the history of Sikh Gurus, the popular paintings of Guru Sahibs have been used. While describing the martyrdom of the Ninth Sikh Guru Tegh Bahadur, the word ‘Bali Daan’ has been used instead of the word ‘Shahadat’, although the death of those party workers killed following the cancellation of 1991 election was called ‘Shahadat’.
Telecasted by P.T.C this documentary is about 47 minutes 14 seconds long, out of which 33 minutes and 12 seconds were allocated to the events such as inception of SAD at Shri Akal Takhat Sahib on December 14, 1920, and events such as Saka Nankana Sahib, Saka Panja Sahib, Saka Morcha Guru ka Bagh, and further recognizes the achievement of Punjabi Suba.
A View from Documentary.
In this documentary the reports and facts were substantiated by SAD (Badal)’s General Secretary Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa, Senior Vice President Balwinder Singh Bhunder, Delhi Committee Chairman Manjit Singh GK, Dr. Besides Dr. Daljit Singh Cheema, the historian Dr. Kirpal Singh, former Member Rajya Sabha Tarlochan Singh, journalist Kuldeep Nayyar, Charanjit Singh Atwal, journalist Jagtar Singh, former Media Advisor Harcharan Bains, former Vice-Chancellor of Punjabi University Dr. Jaspal Singh. Interestingly, some details of the statement of the former general secretary of the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee, Sukhdev Singh Bhaur, who left the Shiromani Akali Dal (Badal), have also been included in this document.
As per the documentary the SAD (Badal) claimed that they never supported any ‘violent advocacy’. In this, putting an internal emergency in India by Indira Gandhi was a stepping stone for the country’s second slavery. The attack on the Darbar Sahib, the November 1984 massacre, the fake police encounter was all part of a larger conspiracy hatched by Indira Gandhi.
Referring to the military attack on Darbar Sahib, it has been said that ” in the concluding days of May (1984) all the issues and matters were settled through talks, but the real intention of Mrs. Gandhi was to win the forthcoming general elections. So she decided to get the country’s emotions at the cost of the Sikhs. The attack on Sri Harmandir Sahib on 3rd June 1984 was the result of this kind of thinking.
Another view of Documentary.
Documentary said that, the accord signed by Harchand Singh Longowal, the then president of the Shiromani Akali Dal, with Rajiv Gandhi, has been described as an action taken and a step taken for the restoration of peace in the state of Punjab.
In the documentary film, it has been clearly mentioned that the word Akalis means that those individuals who believe in the existence of Akal Purakh’ and the Akali Dal has always fought for the rights of the general masses. SAD (Badal) admits that the resolution of Anandpur Sahib, adopted in 1973, defines more rights for the states by staying in the Indian Constitution and the party has opposed the Emergency as the country was being treated by yet another slavery. The SAD opposed this emergency to tooth and nail, which infuriated Mrs Gandhi and she dissolved the government of Punjab headed by the then Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal in 1977 and imposed President’s rule. Under a deliberate conspiracy, “The era of disturbance in Punjab”, the attack of June 1984 and November 1984 massacre of the Sikhs in New Delhi were direct result of such conspiracy.
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Further, the documentary states that due the cancelation of 1991 state assembly elections by the central government just a day before the voting the SAD decided to boycott the 1992 elections, because of which Congress lead Beant Singh with 9 percent voter turnout formed the government in the state. This lead to the state sponsored period of excesses and atrocities committed upon Sikh civilian population.
Moreover, it is also claimed in the documentary that by forming a political alliance with ‘pro-hindutva’ Jan Sangh (BJP) the SAD had given a great example of ‘secularism’ and has also termed the decision take back in 1994 to recruit non-Sikhs into the party as ‘historic’. And this is the reason that the SAD (Badal) was able to rule 15 years from 1997-2002 and then again from 2007 to 2017 uninterruptedly. It was particularly claimed by Journalist Kuldeep Nayer that former Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal has is the most adored Sikh leader among Hindus.
Journalist Kuldeep Naiyer.
In the last half of the document, there is a mention of Chandigarh and other Punjabi speaking areas, central government debt towards Punjab, greater rights to the states and river waters of Punjab.
Term it as an achievement of the film or distortion of the historical facts, but nowhere does the documentary mentions about the sacrifice made by Damdami Taksal Chief Sant Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, Gen. Shahbeg Singh, Bhai Amrik Singh and other Singh who attained martyrdom while defending the Darbar Sahib complex from the invading Indian Army. Additionally, the film is silent on the Dharam Yudh Morcha initiated by SAD on 4th August 1982, to fight for the rights of the Sikhs, wich turned out to be a watershed moment to the events of 1984.