Singh, who was Deputy Commissioner of Amritsar and initiated and participated in the operation, recounts Operation Black Thunder in 1988 in Punjab, India, when the Indian government removed terrorists who had occupied the Golden Temple of Amritsar. He details the factors responsible for the rise and growth of terrorism in Punjab, including the role of Pakistan in promoting terrorism in India, and the role of politicians and the Congress government in Delhi, particularly its use of central intelligence agencies to undermine the growth of a regional party like the Akali Dal by promoting the rise of leaders such as Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale. He also discusses the history of Punjab during the 1980s before the Rajiv-Longwood Accord, through the tenure of various governors and their efforts to stop terrorism, until the early 1990s when peace was restored. Annotation ©2014 Ringgold, Inc., Portland, OR (protoview.com)
Terrorism has affected several of India’s states, at different times and in different forms, and continues to be a matter of national, and increasingly international, concern. One of the states most affected by terrorism was Punjab, which was torn apart by acts of violence during the 1980s, while its people were caught in the crossfire between the threats of the terrorists and the Indian government’s attempts to combat them.
The Golden Temple in Amritsar was the scene of two pivotal anti-terrorist operations during this decade- Operation Blue Star in 1984 followed by Operation Black Thunder in 1988, when the Indian government dislodged terrorists who had occupied this holiest of Sikh places of worship. The consequences of Operation Blue Star included the assassination of Indira Gandhi-the Prime Minister who sanctioned the operation. The success of Operation Black Thunder, on the other hand, was a turning point in the battle against terrorism.
Centred around a gripping account of
Operation Black Thunder, by one who initiated it and was intimately involved in executing it, this absorbing book analyses the factors responsible for the rise and growth of terrorism in Punjab, including the role of Pakistan in promoting terrorism in India. Pulling no punches, the author also criticizes the role of politicians and the Congress government in Delhi, particularly its use of central intelligence agencies in order to undermine the growth of a regional party like the Aklali Dal by promoting the rise of leaders such as Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale.
Sarab Jit Singh covers the history of Punjab during the 1980s from before the Rajiv-Longowal Accord, through the tenure of successive Governors and their measures to curb terrorism, till elections were held in the early 1990s and peace was finally restored to Punjab. In the process he brings to light many crucial and significant events which have remained shrouded in mystery.
Combining an impartial and authentic eyewitness account of a tumultuous period in contemporary political history with a critical analyses of the causes of the growth of terrorism in Punjab and the methods used to combat it, this book will be of interest to students of politics, public administration, contemporary Indian history and the general reader.
