India: Information on the raid in the Amritsar Golden Temple in 1984 and punishment of deserters, Damdami Taksal group, situation of Sikhs in the Punjab district of Haryana, All-India Sikh Student Federation and what happens to those who quit the movement
| Publisher | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |
| Publication Date | 1 April 1989 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | IND0740 |
| Cite as | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, India: Information on the raid in the Amritsar Golden Temple in 1984 and punishment of deserters, Damdami Taksal group, situation of Sikhs in the Punjab district of Haryana, All-India Sikh Student Federation and what happens to those who quit the movement, 1 April 1989, IND0740, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6aae958.html [accessed 30 May 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
Regarding the situation of Sikhs in the Punjab, a copy of a recent response to an information request on the subject is attached, as well as copies of the documents listed below. According to the various atlases available at present at the IRBDC, Haryana is not a district of Punjab, but a separate state.
There is no information available at present at the IRBDC, Ottawa, regarding the specific question of Sikhs in Haryana.
Regarding the battle which took place in the Golden Temple of Amristar in 1984, the desertion of Sikh military personnel and their punishment, reports indicate different numbers of deserters and prisoners; some were arrested and later released and reincorporated into the army and defence agencies (see attached copies of Keesing's Record of World Events, listed below).
The Damdami Taskal is a militant Sikh religious seminary group [Revolutionary and Dissident Movements (London: Longman, 1988), p. 157.] In collaboration with the All-India Sikh Students Federation, the Damdami Taskal formed an advisory panel "to look after the religious and political affairs of the Sikhs. [Ibid.] More information on the group can be found in the attached sources.
The All-India Sikh Students Federation (AISSF) was formed in 1943 as the youth wing of Akali Dal, the party which has "dominated Sikh affairs for the past 60 years." [ The Sikhs, (London: The Minority Rights Group, 1984), p. 14.] Proscribed between 19 March 1984 and 11 April 1985 (refer to chronology in the IRBDC's Information Package on India), the AISSF has since resumed open participation in demonstrations and other activities against the Indian government; a faction of the AISSF (the Gurjit Singh faction) maintains close contacts with the Khalistan Commando Force, a Sikh extremist force. [ Kushwant Singh, "Reign of Terror", The Illustrated Weekly of India (Bombay), 6 September 1987, p. 27.]
No information is available at present at the IRBDC, Ottawa, on the consequences of deserting the AISSF. A copy of The Sikhs (London: Minority Rights Group, 1984), which provides background information on related subjects, is attached to the information package on India available at present at the IRB Regional Documentation Centres.
The attached documents include:
-Revolutionary and Dissident Movements, (London: Longman, 1988), pp. 156-157.
-Keesing's Record of World Events, (London, Keesing's Reference Publications), pp. 33223-4, 33460-3, 33986-7, 34563, 33988, 35808, 35872, 35937.
-Response to information request on latest developments in the Punjab and information on the AISSF, (IRBDC, 7 March 1989), 4 pages.
