The Operation Blue Star (June 4 to June 6, 1984) was the Indian military operation at the Golden Temple in Amritsar, Punjab, the holiest temple of the Sikh religion.
Occupation of Golden Temple by Bhindranwale
The Punjab state India had seen the rate of murder and overall crime rise in the early 1980's. This was in large part due to the conflict between the Sikhs and the secular government of India. Many Sikhs felt that they were being discriminated against. The distrust between the Sikhs and the governement grew. Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale had become the voice of the militancy against the government.
Following a crackdown on Sikh militants in early 1984, a group of militant Sikhs led by Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale fortified the Golden Temple complex. The complex served as a safe hideout for Bhindranwale as he continued his movement. Bhindranwale was now using the Akal Takht as his own residence. The Akal Takht faces the Golden Temple and is the holiest Takht in Sikhism.
In March 1984, by which time the temple complex was already long occupied by Bhindranwale, the then leader of the Sikh militants, the Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi ordered the Indian army to surround the temple. Tensions continued to mount between the government and the sikh militants amidst an increase in sectarian violence in the state of Punjab.
On the 3rd of June, a 36 hour curfew was imposed on the state of Punjab which increased the apprehensiveness of the militants inside the temple that a raid on the temple was imminent. The period coincided with the weekend of 2nd and 3rd, the anniversary of the martyrdom of Guru Arjan Dev, who built the Golden Temple and compiled the Sikh's Holy book. As a result of this, when the curfew was imposed the temple was filled with worshippers.
Role of Afghan War and Pakistan
The Soviet invasion of Afghanistan had the strategic objective of allowing Soviets access to the Persian Gulf with the ability to shut-off the crucial oil supplies of Iran, Iraq, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates should the eventuality arise. The other long term goal was to extend Soviet sphere of influence over Iran (where there had been an Islamic Revolution in 1979) and the Middle East while shoring up its control of Central Asian SSRs.
Afghanistan has access to the Arabian Sea through the Pakistani province of Baluchistan. A breakup of Pakistan or a favourable regime change would have given the Soviets access to Baluchi or Pakistani ports.
Pakistan, a then United States ally and CENTO (also known as the Baghdad Pact) signatory, responded by working with US security forces and the CIA to train, equip and operationally support mujahideen fighters against the Soviets in Afghanistan. India, had been a non-aligned nation for much of its history, but after Pakistani genocides in Bangladesh (see Bangladesh Liberation War) and a rebuke from President of United States Richard Nixon had signed the Indo- Soviet ‘Treaty of Peace, Friendship and Cooperation’ in the days prior to the Third Indo-Pakistan War (the Eastern theatre of which is also known as the Bangladesh Liberation War) in 1971.
In the intelligence war that followed, Indian security and intelligence agencies led by the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) supported and aided KGB efforts within Pakistan, while Pakistan agencies led by the Inter-Services Intelligence Directorate (ISI) pursued a doctrine to ferment Low Intensity Conflicts (LICs) within India such as Operation Topac. Regions with a majority population of religions or ethnic minorities were to be targeted, particularly Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab and the North-East. In Punjab, ISI activities focussed on the creation of a separate states.
Bluestar operational plans
The Indian Army had thought the operation would last a few hours at most. However, after the Operation Bluestar commander Major General Brar visited the Golden Temple complex the day before the operation he realized that the Sikh militants had prepared well and built defensive positions against an attack. The Sikh separatist forces within the Golden Temple were led by former Major General Shabeg Singh (dismissed from the Indian Army in 1976).Maj. Gen. Brar, a Sikh himself, and Lt. Gen. Sundarji, another senior commander, believed there was no way to avoid a violent resolution. Brar went in and briefed all troops.
Timeline
The Indian army asked the militants to surrender and made a plea to release the trapped civilians inside. The militants however refused to surrender. The army used as much force as it deemed necessary to dislodge the militants.
Eyewitnesses say that the army deployed tanks, armed personnel carriers, rocket launchers, heavy machine guns and helicopters. Many of the buildings surrounding the Temple were reduced to rubble. The damage inside of the temple complex was severe. The Harmindar Sahib [the sanctum sanctorum where the Sikh holy book, the Guru Granth Sahib, is kept during the day] received many bullet holes. The Sikh holy book itself was even hit by a bullet.
The militants in the temple appeared to be armed with machine guns, anti-tank missiles and rocket launchers and resisted the army's attempts to dislodge them from the shrine. The militants also appeared to have planned for a long occupation of the shrine having arranged for water from wells within the temple compound, and had stocked food provisions that would have lasted months.
The fighting between the militants and the Indian military continued throughout the night. Major General Brar made the decision to bring in tanks to support the military in hopes of finishing the operation before dawn. After two days of heavy fighting with the assistance of superior military equipment the Indian military was able to bring most of the Golden Temple complex under its control.
Despite the government's claims that only extremists were killed other reports show that many visitors were killed in the cross-fire. India today (30/9/84) reported the case of Zaida Khartton, a Bangladeshi woman who stopped to get food for her five children at the Golden Temple and ended up in jail. Water, electricity and telephone links to the Golden Temple were cut off.
On 18/6/84 Christian Science Monitor reported: -" For five days the Punjab has been cut off from the rest of the world. All telephone and telex links are cut. No foreigners are permitted entry and on Tuesday, all Indian journalists were expelled. There are no newspapers, no trains, no buses- not even a bullock cart can move."
The success in emptying the temple was marred by the damage to the temple building and killing of civilian worshipers caught in the fire.
Operation Blue Star led to India's bitter relations with Sikhs all over the world. It was considered by most Sikhs as a great insult because of the use of force at their holy place, on one of the most holiest of days. The later assassination of Indira Gandhi by her Sikh bodyguards was said to be in response. The events that followed were more horrific. Anti-Sikh riots broke out in North India killing as many as 2000 Sikhs, militancy in Punjab lasted for more than a decade in which many people were killed.
Later on numerous Kar Sevaks volunteered to rebuild the Harmandir Sahib.
Operation Bluestar was followed by Operation Woodrose, in which the Indian government expanded their operations in Punjab and arrested and killed many thousands of Sikh militants.
References
