List of terrorist incidents in Punjab, India

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See also: Timeline of the Punjab insurgency

This is a partial list of victims of violence in Punjab (India) during the 1980s and 1990s.

During the Punjab insurgency[edit]

See also: Punjab insurgency
See also: List of actions attributed to KCF
Date Place Incident
29 Sep 1981 Sikh separatists hijack Indian jetliner to Pakistan. All passengers rescued by Pakistani commandos.[1]
16 October 1981 Chandigarh IAS officer Mr. Naranjan Singh was attacked in the civil secretariat. He survived but his brother Surinder Singh ACSO of defence HQ was killed by the Sikh extremists. Several Hindu temples attacked [2]
August 4, 1982 Amritsar A Sikh granthi, Gurbaksh Singh, hijacked an Indian Airlines Boeing 737 with a fake bomb. He surrendered peacefully after Pakistan refused permission for its landing at Lahore. The granthi had demanded $300,000, safe passage to North America, and the release of various imprisoned Sikh extremists.[3][4]
August 20, 1982 Manjit Singh hijacked Indian Airlines Flight 492, initially heading from Mumbai to New Delhi. Manjit demanded the pilot to fly to Lahore to refuel and head to Libya. After Pakistani authorities blocked their runway, the plane landed in Amritsar. Negotiations proceeded between the airport authorities and Manjit, in which he demanded a payment of 800,000 German marks, the transfer of power in Punjab to the Akali Dal, and the release of imprisoned Sikh granthis. He was eventually overpowered by the police and passengers in an ensuing scuffle.[5]
October 1982 Amritsar Sikh extremists threw a grenade at a Hindu Dusshera procession near the Golden Temple, killing 1 and injuring 60. This incident was triggered by the death of a Nihang Sikh who was shot after he attacked a police officer.[6][7][8]
April 1983 Punjab police DIG A. S. Atwal murdered outside Harmandir Sahib, the holiest shrine of the Sikhs, and his body left to rot. He came in with his Punjab Police uniform and his gun when he was killed.[9]
September 1983 Jagraon Khalistani militants fire indiscriminately at people walking.[10]
September-

5 October 1983

Dhilwan 6 Bus passengers aboard a bus traveling from Dhilwan in Kapurthala District to Jalandhar, all of them Hindus, killed by Sikh militants in 1983 Dhilwan Bus massacre. In a separate incident, a police subinspector and a tax inspector were also killed aboard a train. A total of 20 people were left dead, and another 18 wounded in a 2-week span.[11] By this time, more than 175 people had been killed by the militants in various incidents.[12][13]
6 October 1983 Some Sikh groups announce the creation of Khalistan President's rule is imposed by the Government India in an attempt to bring order in Punjab.[12]
8 October 1983 Punjab Police Are Given Broad Powers[14]
14 October 1983 A festival bombed in Chandigarh[15]
21 October 1983 Gobindgarh Massacre of 58 Hindu passengers by Sikh militants. Unofficial number is more than 100 Hindus[16][17][18]
18 Nov 1983 Kapurthala district Nine armed men killed four Hindu bus passengers. Baba Ajit Singh, a Nihang, confronted the attackers and stopped further killings. Like in the October killings, the killers abandoned the bus at the Chitiwind village on the outskirts of Amritsar.[19]
9 Feb 1984 Sikh militants kill two Sikh men belonging to a breakaway group, and also bomb a wedding procession[20]
23 Feb 1984 11 Hindus pulled off from trains and buses and killed by Sikh militants ; 27 more wounded.[21]
1 January 1984 to 3 June 1984 Various places in Punjab 298 Hindus had been killed officially in violence in five months preceding Operation Blue Star. unofficial number of Hindus killed was well over 500[22]
April 9, 1984 Bhatinda A bomb explosion in a Hindu temple planted by Sikh militants wounded 3 people. A witness scheduled to testify against a Sikh militant was shot and killed by unidentified gunmen.
21 May 1984 Moga 13 Hindus killed by Sikh militants.[23]
3 June to 8 June 1984 Amritsar more than 3000 (unofficial figure) people killed including 170 Sikh militants holed up inside the Harmandir Sahib temple complex and army troops fighting them and civilians caught in the cross fire between militants and the Indian army in Golden Temple which was termed as operation Blue Star. The total number of militants was in excess of 180 who were equipped with rocket launchers, artillery, hand grenades, and Chinese made shoulders fired missile launchers. They were led by Maj Gen Subeg Singh a disgruntled and court martialled officer of Indian army who had joined Bhindranwale and had connections with Pak Army because he had served in Bangladesh in 1971–72
12 September 1984 Batala 8 bus passengers killed.
10 and 11 May 1985 New Delhi 85 Hindus were killed in serial bomb blasts by Khalistanis which occurred during consecutive days at various places across New Delhi and its neighboring Haryana and Uttar Pradesh. 59 Hindus had died on the spot while the rest succumbed to injuries after being Hospitalized. The terrorists used transistor bombs in a train and 2 buses. They also planted bombs in crowded places like Market and Public Park.[24][25]
20 Aug 1985 Sherpur Harchand Singh Longowal assassinated near sherpur Punjab.[26]
6 March 1986 Kapurthala 13 Hindu civilians killed and 18 wounded in indiscriminate firing by Sikh militants.[27]
27 March 1986 Amritsar Former Communist Party of India legislator Arjan Singh Mastana and his bodyguard gunned down and several Hindus killed [28]
28 March 1986 Ludhiana 13 people killed in indiscriminate firing in Dresi ground, killing Kharti leaders including that of Jagirpur, Mayor Krishan Sood. unofficial number of Hindus killed was 32[29]
29 March 1986 Mallian, Jalandhar 20 labourers killed by militants.
8 June 1986 Amritsar 9 People killed by Sikh extremists.[30]
25 July 1986 Mukatsar 15 bus passengers gunned down by suspected Sikh militants.[31]
10 Aug 1986 Pune Retired Army Chief of Staff, General Arun Shridhar Vaidya killed by Sikh militants.[32]
17 Sept 1986 Phillaur Sikh extremists kill a Shiv Sena Hindu leaders and several Hindu leaders are targeted and a hit list is published every week in Jagbani and Ajeet Punjabi newspapers for Hindu leader in politics, administration, and other government services to leave Punjab or face death for nearly all weeks between 1983 and 1985.[33]
25 October

1986

Chandigarh Suspected Sikh extremists opened fire in a Hindu market, killing nine and wounding ten.[34]
30 October 1986 Hoshiarpur Sikh militants robbed a bank, killed 5 Hindus and the unofficial number of Hindus killed was 23.[35]
31 October 1986 Ludhiana 8 migrant and local Hindu industrial workers gunned down in indiscriminate firing on Daba road, Ludhiana. unofficial number was around 22 Hindus dead
30 November 1986 Khudda 24 Hindu bus passengers gunned down. Unofficial number was more than 50.[36]
January 1987 Congress Sikh MLA Sant Singh Liddar murdered.[37]
January 1987 Sikh militants kill eight people. Most of the victims were Hindus.[38]
8 May 1987 Sukhdev Singh, the son of the moderate Akali leader Jiwan Singh Umranangal, was murdered by the militants. In 1986, Jiwan Singh had undertaken a door-to-door campaign in the Majha region, meeting the families of the militants and asking for their help in convincing the militants to give up the violence.[39]
19 May 1987 Tarn Taran Deepak Dhawan, the State Committee member of the CPI(M)
14 June 1987 Delhi and Punjab Sikh militants in New Delhi killed 12 Hindus celebrating a baby's birthday party. 13 other people were killed in Punjab. Security was increased in New Delhi following reports of possible school bus bomb attacks by Sikh militants.[40][41]
3 July 1987 Gurnam Singh Uppal, a moderate Sikh leader and the president of the Punjab unit of Democratic Youth Federation of India, was killed.
6 July 1987 Near Lalru Khalistan Commando Force militants hijacked a Haryana Roadways bus and killed 38 Hindu bus passengers.[42]
7 July 1987 Near Fatehabad Sikh militants kill 34 Hindu bus passengers from two Haryana Roadways buses near Fatehabad[42]
6 August 1987 Jagdev Kalan 12 people gunned down. Before shooting them victim were forced to chant "Long Live the Sikh Nation".[43]
19 August 1987 Jalandhar 11 people killed by Sikh militants including a Hindu man and his baby son.[44]
28 September 1987 Alawalpur 5 killed and 8 injured, firing near Geetha Bhawan.
20 October 1987 Delhi 12 persons shot dead at various places in Delhi on Diwali day.
15 January 1988 Dhadial Nijhran, village near Batala 8 members of a family including 2 women and 3 children killed
22 January 1988 Punjab 12 people and a Hindu leader killed by Sikh extremists.[45]
19 February 1988 Gurdaspur, Hoshiarpur and Patiala Bombs exploded by Babbar Khalsa. 12 to 13 persons killed and nearly 50 injured.[46]
2 March 1988 Bhaian 8 members of a family killed.
3 March 1988 Kahri sahri 35 persons shot dead, 50 others injured, indiscriminate firing at a festival gathering by terrorists believed to be Sikh militants.[47]
29 March 1988 Bhathe (Kartarpur) 2 Persons shot dead by militants
31 March 1988 Rajbah 18 members of a Rajput family shot dead at village the Rajbah under police station.
2 April 1988 Punjab Sikh gunmen stormed into huts and houses across Punjab state and killed 37 people, including 7 children [48]
15 May 1988 Samana, Patiala 26 persons killed, 100 others injured in different incidents
16 May 1988 Amritsar, Ludhiana, Jalandhar and Gurdaspur 40 persons gunned down, 100 others injured in different incidents
17 May 1988 Kharar 35 labourers massacred.
24 May 1988 Dhaliwal (Nakodar) 6 members of a family murdered.
19–21 June 1988 Punjab and Haryana 3 bomb explosions took place over the course of 3 consecutive days. The week prior witnessed a bomb explosion in Amristar in the vicinity of the Shivala Bhaiyan Temple. 22 people were killed and 40 were injured, the terrorists specifically chose Monday, considered a particularly auspicious day to worship Lord Shiva, as the day to attack. The second Amristar explosion took place in a predominantly Hindu textile market, killing 28 and injuring 50. In Haryana, Sikh terrorists set off a bomb near a TV shop where people congregated to watch the Ramayana, killing 20 people. The third bomb explosion was in New Delhi and targeted a vegetable market, killing 3 and injuring 42. Sikh terrorists further gunned down 6 people in a cinema hall in Pehowa, Haryana. The motive of these attacks was to incite a Hindu backlash and exacerbate communal tensions between both communities.[49]
22 June 1988 Raman Mandi, Bathinda Social Worker Baldev Raj Mittal gunned down [citation needed]
7 September 1988 Rure Aasal (Amritsar district) 15 rail passengers killed, 25 injured at Rure Aasal railway station.
8 January 1989 Sikh terrorists killed 14 Hindus after the hanging of the two men responsible for the assassination of Indira Gandhi.[50]
25 June 1989 Moga 27 Swayamsevaks of the RSS who were participating in the daily shakha conducted at Nehru Park were shot dead by some Khalistani terrorists who came on motorcycles, raised provocative slogans and started firing indiscriminately.[51]
11 Nov 1989 Patiala 19 students of Thapar Engineering College were massacred while they slept in their dorm by Sikh Extremists.[52][53]
19 January 1990 Ballagan, Amritsar 8 Hindu villagers shot down by militants
7 March 1990 Abohar 32 shot dead in indiscriminate firing at crowded market [54]
30 May 1990 Ferozepur Sikh extremists kill 10 in attack on market.[55]
28 May 1990 Khalistan Commando Force attacked a farm, Killed 13 migrant workers, including 11 Hindus.[55]
22 November 1990 Aliwal BATALA gsp Bank dacoity in Aliwal and Guard killed
November 1990 Amritsar Sikh militants killed 23 Hindus in multiple attacks.[56]
15 June 1991 Ludhiana district 1991 Punjab killings; 110 passengers killed by Sikh militants.[57]
11 March 1992 Harkishanpura 16 Hindu workers killed by Sikh militants.[58]
15 March 1992 Ludhiana 18 people killed by Sikh militants.[59]
10 August 1992 Barnala 31 people killed by Sikh militants.[60]
6 January 1993 Chhichhrewal (Gurdaspur) 11 Terrorists encountered
11 September 1993 Chandigarh 12 people killed in bomb blast that was an assassination attempt on Youth Congress(I) Punjab minister Maninderjit Bitta.[61]
25 February 1994 Rajasthan Leader of Khalistan Liberation Force Navneet Singh Khadian encountered by Punjab Police
31 August 1995 Chandigarh Punjab's Chief Minister Beant Singh belonging to Congress party along with 17 others killed by a suicide bomber

After end of Punjab insurgency[edit]

On 31 August 1995, Chief minister Beant Singh was killed by a suicide bomber. The pro-Khalistan group Babbar Khalsa claimed responsibility for the assassination, but "security authorities" were reported to be doubtful of the truth of that claim.[62] A 2006 press release by the Embassy of the United States in New Delhi indicated that the responsible organization was the Khalistan Commando Force.[63]

The Indian Express reported in its online edition on 19 June 2006 that the Khalistan Zindabad Force was behind bomb blasts in Jalandhar, India, at the Inter-State Bus Terminus that left three people killed and injured 12. A police spokesman said the attack was planned by a pair of KZF leaders, one based in Pakistan and one in Canada, and executed by a "local criminal".[64]

On 22 May 2005, Consecutive bomb blasts took place in the Liberty cinema and Satyam cinema in New Delhi during the screeing of the movie Jo Jo Bole So Nihaal (film) in which 3 people died and dozens were injured. The movie was being opposed by a section of intellectual Sikhs.[65]

On 14 October 2007, Six people were killed and 32 injured in a bomb blast at Shingaar cinema hall, Ludhiana.[66]

On 24 September 2009, the Punjab Police arrested two Babbar Khalsa militants involved in the assassination of Rulda Singh, president of the Punjab Rashtriya Sikh Sangat who was shot at and seriously injured by two unidentified persons at his residence near New Grain market on 29 July.[67]

2016–17 targeted killings in Punjab, India: multiple attacks on Hindu leaders of Shiv Sena, Rashtriya Swayam Sevak Sangh and BJP happened during the years 2016–17. Six leaders of these organisations were killed.[68]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Kaufman, Michael T. (30 September 1981). "Sikh Separatists Hijack Indian Jetliner to Pakistan". The New York Times. Retrieved 22 November 2014.
  2. ^ K. S. Saxena; Anil Gupta (1985). Indian democracy: Recent trends & issues. Anmol.
  3. ^ "Holy Man Hijacks Jet". Herald-Journal. p. 6.
  4. ^ "Hijacker may face death sentence". St. Petersburg Times. p. 10.
  5. ^ "Amritsar electrician hijacks Indian Airlines aircraft to Lahore, shot dead". India Today. Retrieved 18 June 2023.
  6. ^ "Terrorist bomb injures 40". The Bulletin. p. 51.
  7. ^ "October 27, 1982, Forty Years Ago: Amritsar blast". The Indian Express. 27 October 2022. Retrieved 18 June 2023.
  8. ^ "Sikh bomb kills 1, wounds 60". Record-Journal. p. 12.
  9. ^ Thukral, Gobind (23 July 2013). "DIG Avtar Singh Atwal brutally murdered outside Golden Temple in Amritsar". India Today. Retrieved 4 May 2019.
  10. ^ Operation Blue Star and White Paper on Punjab Agitation (Think India Journal) p.7
  11. ^ "Indian government orders crackdown on terrorism". Lakeland Ledger. p. 59.
  12. ^ a b "Indian Government takes over a state swept by religious strife". 7 October 1983. Retrieved 22 November 2014.
  13. ^ "Sikhs execute six hindus on hijacked bus". 6 October 1983.
  14. ^ Stevens, William K. (8 October 1983). "Punjab Police Are Given Broad Powers". The New York Times.
  15. ^ Stevens, William K. (16 October 1983). "Mrs. Gandhi Says Terrorism Will Fail". The New York Times.
  16. ^ Hans Raj Khanna (1987). Terrorism in Punjab: Cause and Cure. Panchnad Research Institute. p. 93.
  17. ^ "Violence, rioting, terrorism in Indian Punjab during last 35 years". www.thenews.com.pk. 4 January 2016. Retrieved 4 May 2019.
  18. ^ "IREF". Retrieved 22 November 2014.
  19. ^ Shekhar Gupta (15 December 1983). "Brutal slaying of four Hindu bus travellers takes tension in Punjab to a new high". India Today. Retrieved 17 January 2022.
  20. ^ Hazarika, Sanjoy (9 February 1984). "General Strike Disrupts Punjab". The New York Times.
  21. ^ Stevens, William K. (23 February 1984). "11 HINDUS KILLED IN PUNJAB UNREST, WILLIAM K. STEVENS, The New York Times, Feb 23, 1984". The New York Times. Retrieved 22 November 2014.
  22. ^ Robert L. Hardgrave; Stanley A. Kochanek (2008). India: Government and Politics in a Developing Nation. Cengage Learning. p. 175. ISBN 978-0-495-00749-4. Retrieved 20 October 2012.
  23. ^ "Sikh Terrorists Kill 13 In Northern India State". The New York Times. 23 May 1984.
  24. ^ "1985 transistor blast case stuck for 20-yrs". Times of india. 21 November 2005.
  25. ^ "India siezes [sic] 1500 as deaths mount". The New York Times. 12 May 1985.
  26. ^ "Sikh Leader in Punjab Accord Assassinated". Los Angeles Times. 21 August 1985.
  27. ^ "Sikh Gunmen Kill 13 Hindus in 3 Attacks : Soldiers on Alert in Punjab State; Curfews in 2 Cities". Los Angeles Times. 28 March 1986.
  28. ^ Dubey, Suman; Thukral, Gobind (15 April 1986). "Punjab under savage siege as terrorist killings, Hindu-Sikh friction wound the state". India Today.
  29. ^ "Sikh gunmen kill 13 hindus in 3 attacks". Los Angeles Times. 28 March 1986.
  30. ^ "9 Killed in Punjab as Sikh Protest Ends". New York Times. Associated Press. 8 June 1986.
  31. ^ "Suspected sikh terrorists kill 15 on bus". Los Angeles Times. 26 July 1986.
  32. ^ "4 GUNMEN KILL EX-COMMANDER OF INDIAN ARMY". The New York Times. 11 August 1986.
  33. ^ "Sikh Extremists Kill Leader Of a Militant Hindu Group". New York Times. Reuters. 17 September 1986.
  34. ^ "Suspected Sikh extremists opened fire with submachine guns at... - UPI Archives". UPI. Retrieved 8 June 2023.
  35. ^ "Sikh terrorists rob bank,kill five". Apnews. 31 October 1986.
  36. ^ "Sikh extremists hijack Punjab bus and kill 24". NeyYork Times. 30 November 1986.
  37. ^ Guru Nanak Journal of Sociology. Sociology Department, Guru Nanak Dev University. 1997. p. 44. Retrieved 19 October 2012.
  38. ^ "Sikh Extremists Kill Eight in New Attacks". apnews. 19 January 1987.
  39. ^ "Akali leader Umranangal passes away". The Tribune. Chandigarh. 8 November 1998. Retrieved 19 October 2012.
  40. ^ "Sikh militant kill 25 in two attacks". Apnews. 14 June 1987.
  41. ^ "Sikh extremists slay 12 Hindus". Eugene Register-Guard. p. 6.
  42. ^ a b Dilip Ganguly (7 July 1987). "Sikhs Kill 34 Hindus on Two Buses, Bringing Two-Day Toll To 72". AP. Retrieved 17 January 2023.
  43. ^ "Sikh Terrorists Kill 12 Hindus". Los Angeles Times. Associated Press. 7 August 1987.
  44. ^ "Sikh militants kill 11 in punjab". Apnews. 19 August 1987.
  45. ^ "Hindu leader,12 others killed in punjab". Apnews. 22 January 1988.
  46. ^ Weintraub, Richard M. (20 February 1988). "COURTS BOMBED IN INDIA'S PUNJAB". The Washington Post.
  47. ^ Hazarika, Sanjoy (4 March 1988). "44 Slain in Sikh-Hindu Violence". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 13 February 2022.
  48. ^ "Sikh militant kill 35 in Year's worst violence". Apnews. 2 April 1988.
  49. ^ "Bombs are new weapon in Punjab terrorists' arsenal". India Today. Retrieved 19 June 2023.
  50. ^ "Sikhs Kill 14 Hindus After Executions in India". The New York Times.
  51. ^ Hazarika, Sanjoy (26 June 1989). "27 Slain in Punjab in 2d Day of Attacks on Hindus". The New York Times.
  52. ^ Ap (11 November 1989). "Sikh Extremists Raid School, Killing 19 Sleeping Students". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 12 November 2022.
  53. ^ "Sikh Separatists Kill 19 Students at India College". Los Angeles Times. 11 November 1989. Retrieved 12 November 2022.
  54. ^ "Attack by Sikh extremists in crowded market kill 22 hindus". Apnews. 8 March 1990.
  55. ^ a b "Sikh extremists kill 10 in attack on market". United Press International. 30 May 1990.
  56. ^ "Sikh Militants Kill 7 Hindus, 10 Others". Apnews. 27 November 1990.
  57. ^ "Sikhs storm 2 trains, KIll 110 in Punjab". Los Angeles Times. 16 June 1991.
  58. ^ "Sikh Militants Kill 16 Hindu Workers". AP NEWS. Retrieved 13 January 2023.
  59. ^ "18 People killed by sikh militants in Punjab". Los Angeles Times. 15 March 1992.
  60. ^ "Sikh militants kill 31 people in revenge for death of leader". Apnews. 10 August 1992.
  61. ^ Kareem, Abdul (10 September 2018). "Today in History: September 11, 1993 — 12 die in Delhi blast". Gulf News.
  62. ^ "Issue Paper INDIA SIKHS IN PUNJAB 1994–95". Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada. February 1996. Retrieved 31 May 2009.[permanent dead link]
  63. ^ "U.S. Court Convicts Khalid Awan for Supporting Khalistan Commando Force". Embassy of the United States in New Delhi, India. 20 December 2006. Archived from the original on 9 October 2008. Retrieved 30 May 2009.
  64. ^ "KZF behind Jalandhar blasts". The Indian Express. 19 June 2006. Retrieved 2 June 2009.
  65. ^ "Cinemas bombed as film angers Sikhs". The Guardian. 23 May 2005. Retrieved 10 October 2019.
  66. ^ "Ludhiana Blast, a 'Terrorist Attack'". Arab News. 16 October 2007. Retrieved 4 May 2019.
  67. ^ United News of India (24 September 2009). "Punjab Police arrest two Babbar Khalsa terrorists". centralchronicle.com. Archived from the original on 17 July 2011. Retrieved 11 October 2009.
  68. ^ Sandhu, Kamaljit Kaur (15 January 2018). "Pakistan's Khalistan agenda behind killing of 6 Hindu leaders in Punjab, says NIA". India Today.

Bibliography[edit]

  • Knights of Falsehood, KPS Gill, 1997
  • Global security watch, Satyapal Dang, 2008
  • Sikhs Slay 13 Hindus In Punjab, United Press International, 29 March 1986
  • Sikh Extremists Open Fire On Top Punjab Police Official, 4 October 1986 The New York Times

External links[edit]

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