What was operation blue star in punjab, why was it and what happened?

Answer 1

What actually happened, was that in the late 1970s, Indira Gandhi lost one of her elections, and she decided to blame it on the Sikhs. She had been taught to hate Sikhs since an early age, because her father Mohandas (also known as Mahatma - however that is an incorrect name) Gandhi, was racist, and religiously discriminatory. So in 1984, on the day of Guru Arjan Dev Ji's shaheedi (martrydom), the Indian army surrounded Harimandar Sahib, and then the leader of a Sikhi separatist movement - Sant Jarnail SIngh Ji Khalsa Bhindrawale - went to protect Harimandar Sahib. The army then attacked SJSJK Bhindrawale, and his 80 or so allies helping to defend the temple, with an army of 10,000. The brave Sikhs were massacred, and the Indian army proceeded to destroy the Akal Tahkt sahib (an important SIki place of worship), and the Sikhi historical library - even after the 'war' was over. THe Harimandar Sahib (Golden Temple) was also badly desecrated. After this incident, the Indian army closed off Punjab (homeland of the Sikhs) from the rest of the world, by cutting down all its phone lines, and disallowing any media to enter the region. The army then proceeded to brutally massacre all Sikhs that they could find. Women were raped, Men were beaten and burnt, and children were butchered. Overall, the rate of deaths was about 10,000, and other casualties numbered in the 30,000s. Later on, Indira Gandhi, who had been prime minister of India at this time, was murdered, by two brave Sikhs. However, other inciters of this well planned attempt at ethnic cleansing, remain unpunished - such as Jagdish Tytler.

Answer 2

Operation Blue Star (June 3 to June 6, 1984) was the Indian military operation at the Harmandir Sahib in Amritsar, Punjab, the holiest temple of the Sikhs. Following a crackdown on Sikh militants in early 1984, Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale's militant faction fortified the Harmandir Sahib complex. Bhindaranwale, along with Shabeg Singh, a Major General dismissed from the Indian army, took to heavily arming and fortifying the Harmandir Sahib. On the 3rd of June, a 36 hour curfew was imposed on the state of Punjab. When the curfew was imposed the temple was filled with worshippers. Operation Bluestar commander Major General Brar visited the Harmandir Sahib complex the day before the operation and realized that the Sikh militants had prepared well and built defensive positions against an attack. The Sikh separatist forces within the Harmandir Sahib were led by former Major General Shabeg Singh (dismissed from the Indian Army in 1976). The operation was expected to be a swift one. However, the firepower and fortifications of the Sikhs had been grossly under estimated. The operation was undertaken in the cover of the night, and due to the immense firepower and sophisticated weapons in the possession of the militants, the Indian army suffered heavy casualties. General Brar was thus forced to order the tanks to be brought in, lest his commando unit be open targets in daylight. The use of artillery in the dense city of Amritsar proved very costly; many innocent people living in close proximity of Golden Temple lost their lives. The second commando attack managed to neutralise the machine-gun posts on either side of the steps. Brar ordered the destruction of Akal Takht, the highest seat of Sikh authority. A total of 90 shells were fired and the Akal Takht was brought down by the Indian army. Many of the buildings surrounding the Temple were reduced to rubble. The damage inside the temple complex was severe. 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 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 Harmandir Sahib complex under its control.
Operation Blue Star is regarded by some military observers in India and the international community as a major military embarrassment. It was criticized as the most poorly conducted and managed military operation in the history of the Indian Army due to the large number of military and civil casualties. The Operation led to an estrangement between the Indian Central government and large portions of the Sikh community. Indira Gandhi was later assassinated by her Sikh bodyguards. The assassination triggered Anti-Sikh riots in North India killing as many as 4000.

Answer 3

First of all people like cascade can go to hell, all they can do is to cut-copy-paste the answers
Indian Army alongwith State Police and CRPF stormed the Golden Temple to catch the terrorist mastermind Bhinderawalan and others, terrorists suffered sevear casualties, India Army elite unit NSG-SAG(Black Cats) spearheaded the operation
It is said that this operation was performed by RAW with inputs from KGB

Answer 4

its an operation against terrorists, those hide in the Gurudwara in amritsar. then prime minister ms. Indira Gandhi ordered militory to kill these extrimists. But few people specialy few sikhs thinks that they were not terrorists. and they also opposed the militory operation in the gurudwara. in 1984 indra gandhi was assassinated due to her permission for operation blue star.

Gurudwara - Temple of sikhs
sikhs - one cast in india

Answer 5

Please go to punjab for further assistance.

Answer 6

June 3 to June 6, 1984) was the Indian military operation at the Harmandir Sahib in Amritsar, Punjab, the holiest temple of the Sikhs.
Contents
[hide]

* 1 Occupation of Harmandir Sahib
* 2 The operation
* 3 Timeline
* 4 Criticism of the Operation
* 5 References

[edit]

Occupation of Harmandir Sahib

Following a crackdown on Sikh militants in early 1984, Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale's militant faction fortified the Harmandir Sahib complex. Bhindaranwale, along with Shabeg Singh, a Major General dismissed from the Indian army, took to heavily arming and fortifying the Harmandir Sahib. Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale was also killed in the operation.
[edit]

The operation

On the 3rd of June, a 36 hour curfew was imposed on the state of Punjab. The period coincided with the anniversary of the martyrdom of Shri Guru Arjan Dev, who built the Harmandir Sahib and compiled the Sikh's Holy book - Shri Guru Granth Sahib. As a result of this, when the curfew was imposed the temple was filled with worshippers.

Operation Bluestar commander Major General Brar visited the Harmandir Sahib complex the day before the operation and realized that the Sikh militants had prepared well and built defensive positions against an attack. The Sikh separatist forces within the Harmandir Sahib were led by former Major General Shabeg Singh (dismissed from the Indian Army in 1976). Gen. Brar and Lt. Gen. Sundarji, another senior commander, believed there was no way to avoid a violent resolution. Brar went in and briefed all troops.

The operation was expected to be a swift one. However, apparently, the firepower and fortifications of the Sikh terrorists had been grossly under estimated. The operation was undertaken in the cover of the night, and due to the immense firepower and sophisticated weapons in the possession of the militants, the Indian army suffered heavy casualties. General Brar was thus forced to order the tanks to be brought in, lest his commando unit be open targets in daylight.

The first task was the destruction of Major-General Shabeg Singh's outer defenses. Much of this had been completed in the preliminary firing when Major-General Brar had hoped to frighten Bhindrenwale into surrendering. These defences included the seventeen houses which the police had allowed Bhindanwale's followers to occupy in the alleys sorrounding the Golden Temple. Some of them were as far as 800 yards away from the complex. These outposts were all in wireless contact with Shahbeg Singh's command post in the Akal Takht. The Temple view hotel outside the Temple complex had also been occupied. Next to it was Brahmbuta Akhara, a large bulding housing the headquarters of a Sikh sect. Then there were three main towers which had been fortified to make positions from which Bhindranwale's men could fire into the Golden Temple complex. Because they stood well above the rest of the building, the towers were also excellent observation posts for watching the movement of troops in the narrow alleys sorrounding the Temple. The tops of these towers were blasted off by the artillery fire. The use of artillery in the dense city of Amritsar proved very costly; many innocent people living in close proximity of Golden Temple lost their lives. Then the commando operation was planned.

It was between 10 and 10:30 PM when commandos from 1st Battalion, the parachute regiment were ordered to run down the steps under the clock tower on to the parikarma, or pavement, turn right and move as quickly as they could round the edge of the sacred tank to the Akal Takht. But as the paratroopers entered the main gateway to the Temple they were gunned downmilitants with light machine-guns who were hiding on either side of the steps leading down to the parikarma. The few commandos who did get down the steps were driven back by a barrage of fire from the building on the south side of the sacred pool. In the control room, in a house on the opposite side of the clock-tower, Major-general Brar was waited with his two supporting officers to hear that the commandos had established positions inside the complex.

The few commandos who survived regrouped in the square outside the Temple, and reported back to Major-General Brar. He reinforced them and ordered them to make another attempt to go in. The commandos were to be followed by the 10th Battalion of the Guards commanded by Lieutenant-colonel Israr Khan. This battalion had Sikh soldiers in its rank. The second commando attack managed to neutralise the machine-gun posts on either side of the steps and get down on to the parikarma. They were followed by the Guards who came under withering fire and were not able to make any progress radioed for permission to fire back at the buildings on the other side of the tank. That would have meant that the Golden Temple itself, which is in the middle of the tank, would have been in the line of fire. Brar initially refused permission, but then started to get messeges from the commander of Guards reporting heavy casualties. They had suffered almost 20 percent casualties without managing to turn the corner of parikarma to the western sides. Sikhs would also suddenly appear from man-holes in the parikarma the Guards were fighting from, let off a burst of machine-gun fire or throw grenades, then disappear into the passages which run under the Temple. These machine-gunners had been taught to fire at knee-level because Major-General Shabeg Singh expected the army to crawl towards its objective, But the Guards and commandos were not crawling, and so many of them received severe leg injuries.

Brar again requested tanks and was this time granted his request. According to Giani ji of Golden Temple, who was present at the Golden Temple itself during all this time, as many as 13 tanks were brought into the parikarma and lined up on the eastern side. Expensive marble was crushed and whole eastern parikarma broke. Brar ordered the destruction of Akal Takht the highest seat of Sikh authority. A total of 90 shells were fired and the Akal Takht was brought down by Indian army.
[edit]

Timeline

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 Harmandir Sahib [the sanctum sanctorum where the Sikh holy book, the Guru Granth Sahib, is kept during the day] received many bullet holes. The book itself was 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. Thus it is a difficult point as to whether the Army could have waited out the militants, cut off electricity, water etc in order to ensure a peaceful non-violent end without the loss of life and desecration of the temple; this was the siege approach taken by Rajiv Gandhi five years later, in Operation Black Thunder.

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 Harmandir Sahib complex under its control.

Later on numerous Kar Sevaks volunteered to rebuild the Harmandir Sahib, turning down an offer to do so by the government. The glory of the temple was fully restored.
[edit]

Criticism of the Operation

Operation Blue Star is regarded by some military observers in India and the international community as a major military embarrassment. It was criticized as the most poorly conducted and managed military operation in the history of the India Army due to the large number of military and civil casualties. Moreover, the success in emptying and depoliticising the temple was marred by the damage to the temple building and the death of civilian worshipers caught in the crossfire.

The Operation led to an estrangement between the Indian Central government and large portions of the Sikh community. Indira Gandhi was later assassinated by her Sikh bodyguards. The assassination triggered Anti-Sikh riots in North India killing as many as 4000.