What Led to the Anti-Sikh Riots of 1984?

Things don’t happen overnight, especially the ones that alter the course of history. The role of memory is often undermined in history and this often creates distortions, and eventually, the subjugation of collective memory. Most people won’t know this, but the 1984 Anti-Sikh Riots were a result of a lot of pent-up issues and the growing indifference between the communities. This resentment ultimately led to one of the most unfortunate events in independent India.

1984 Pogrom. Image source: All About Sikhs

Many people feel that the Sikhs were responsible for the atrocities inflicted upon them in 1984. By what logic can a civil society justify a pogrom against any community?

It wasn't that things changed overnight, but a chain of events led to the Anti-Sikh Riots of 1984. Let’s take a brief look at them.

Since Independence, indifferences seemed to be growing between the Sikhs and Hindus. The solid brotherhood was now impregnated with tensions. The Punjabi Suba issue, the sharing of rivers, and the allocation of Chandigarh were the blocks singled out by all political parties to gain political leverage.

The Sikhs, however, were unhappy. And they would naturally be so. The Sikh community had been vital to the freedom struggle and all wars fought by an independent India. In addition to that, the land of Punjab added to the country's prosperity. All this politics was the root cause of their miseries.

The relations between New Delhi and Punjab deteriorated at an unprecedented rate, and the late seventies witnessed the demand for the formation of Khalistan. The era also saw the emergence of groups that resorted to violence.

This is why Operation Blue Star took place. There was a spectre of fear that all Sikhs were participating in a separationist movement, and this was a threat to the country.

Operation Blue Star created a chasm between the Sikhs and the rest of the communities in India. The Golden Temple, a holy shrine, had been attacked on the day of Guru Arjan Dev's martyrdom. Thousands of innocent devotees were killed. Though the army was meant to take out the militants from the temple complex, those who had nothing to do with violence also paid a heavy price.

After Operation Blue star, the assassination of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi by her two Sikh bodyguards enraged the entire country, which ultimately led to the 1984 Anti-Sikh riots.

How Operation Blue Star happened. Image source: Dailymail.co.uk