Operation Bluestar anniversary: high security in Punjab

As Punjab approaches the 35th anniversary of Operation Bluestar on Thursday with caution, portraits of Khalistan ideologue and slain militant Sant Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale on T-shirts, mugs and other memorabilia still charm a section of people in the state.

Bhindranwale, along with his supporters, took up arms seeking Khalistan and were killed in the military operation in 1984, when the Army stormed inside the sacred Golden temple to flush out militants holed up inside.

35 years later, travelling across Punjab, it is hard not to spot a cab or a private vehicle with a portrait of Bhindranwale pasted on its rear.

The slain Khalistan ideologue was declared a martyr by the Akal Takht, the supreme temporal seat of Sikhism, in 2003. The Bombay High Court recently dismissed a writ petition that urged the court to delete the reference of Sikh leader Jarnail Singh Bhindrawale as ‘terrorist’ from school history textbooks.

The grounds in the petition did not impress the bench, as they disagreed with the contention of the petitioner that a ‘saint’ is projected as a terrorist.

Meanwhile, security in this border state has been beefed up ahead of the Bluestar anniversary. Intel reports have suggested an ISI project to target retired Military and police officials in a bid to revive militancy in Punjab. However, during a high-level meeting reviewing Punjab's internal security, Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh is said to have raised doubts about the authenticity of alleged Intel report.

The CM agreed with his state top brass that reports referring to Intel inputs on such a project by ISI seemed far-fetched. However, he asked the police to take all possible steps to verify such reports and check the spread of rumours.

Radicals and Sikh organizations have started preparations for the anniversary of Operation Bluestar. Six companies of paramilitary forces, besides nearly 5000 cops, are stationed in the holy city Amritsar and other areas to ensure peace.

In 2014, on the day of the anniversary of Bluestar, a clash took place between radical Sikh activists and the task force of the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) that left several injured in the Golden Temple complex.