Chandigarh, Jul 13: Paramjit Kaur Khalra, wife of slain human rights activist Jaswant Singh Khalra, on Monday urged the Akal Takht to form a ‘People’s Commission’ to determine the actual number of people who went missing, the number of unidentified bodies, and those killed in alleged fake police encounters in Punjab during the ‘80s and ‘90s.
Kaur’s remarks followed renewed public attention on the Khalra case after the release, and subsequent takedown, of the Diljit Dosanjh-starrer film ‘Satluj’ from ZEE5, which is based on the activist’s life.
Notably, the Akal Takht, which is the supreme temporal seat of the Sikhs, will hold ‘ardas’ (prayers) on Tuesday for the eternal peace of those Sikh youths whose cases were brought to light by Khalra, and seek justice for the affected families.
In a post on X in Punjabi, Kaur said that with Punjab preparing to gather on Tuesday at the invitation of the Akal Takht Jathedar at Harike Pattan, the people of the state, the entire Sikh community, and people around the world who believe in justice for human rights should unite and raise their voices in search of truth.
“The military attack on Sri Darbar Sahib (Golden Temple) in June 1984, the Sikh genocide in November 1984, and the unidentified bodies, torture, and thousands of fake police encounters in the years that followed still demand accountability and justice,” she said.
The military operation under Operation Bluestar was carried out between June 1 and June 10, 1984, to flush out militants from the Golden Temple in Amritsar.
“The Congress government during that time carried out this genocide and violations of human rights, and the subsequent governments also failed to play any role in delivering justice,” Kaur alleged.
She also charged the previous Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) government of failing to ensure accountability and extending support and official positions to police officers accused of wrongdoings.
The present AAP government (in Punjab) too failed to bring the convicted police personnel to justice, she claimed, alleging that the BJP-led Centre also faced allegations of targeted killings on foreign soil.
Kaur said the entire Sikh community looks up to the Akal Takht with the hope that it will provide fearless and impartial leadership in accordance with the principles established by the Sikh Gurus.
“We respectfully request the Jathedar Sahab that a People’s Commission be formed to bring forth the true count of people who went missing in Punjab during the 1980s and 1990s, the unidentified bodies, and those killed in fake police encounters,” Kaur said.
“Those unidentified bodies, whose identities were revealed through the martyrdom of Sardar (Jaswant Singh) Khalra, should be given their rightful place in the Central Sikh Museum (in Amritsar), as they deserve,” she said.
Kaur also said that the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) should provide financial assistance to the victims’ families.
Directed by Honey Trehan, ‘Satluj’ depicts the life of Khalra, who investigated the “illegal” cremation of thousands of “unidentified” bodies in Punjab between 1984 and 1994.
Khalra was abducted from in front of his house in Amritsar in September 1995. He was later found to have been murdered though his body was never found.
Earlier titled ‘Punjab ‘95’, the film was pulled from the OTT platform ZEE5 for viewers in India two days following its release on July 3 after the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting cited security concerns.
“No political party or individual should be above accountability and law. Those who carried out the genocide of innocents, denied justice, hid the truth of the Sikh genocide, or supported violations of human rights must be held accountable in the people’s court; all their official honors must be revoked, and they must face social boycott,” Kaur demanded in her post.
Since her husband was murdered, Kaur has been working as a rights activist under the banner of ‘Khalra Mission Organisation’.
In November 2005, a CBI court had sentenced former DSP Jaspal Singh and ASI Amarjit Singh to life imprisonment for Khalra’s abduction and murder, while four other policemen were handed seven-year jail terms each.
In 2007, the Punjab and Haryana High Court acquitted Amarjit Singh while enhancing the sentences of the four other convicts to life imprisonment, a decision that the Supreme Court upheld in 2011.
The row over ‘Satluj’ has turned political in Punjab, with the SGPC demanding that the ban be lifted, and the SAD announcing community screening of the film across the state.
At some places, Sikh bodies are also holding screenings of the film on village grounds. (PTI)
