When the Singhs told the harsh truth to the keepers of the ‘blind’ law

Statement of Bhai Harjinder Singh Jinda to the court

 

One Universal Creator God. By The Grace Of The True Guru

May the timeless one protect

He alone is known as a spiritual hero, who fights in defense of religion.

He may be cut apart, piece by piece, but he never leaves the field of battle. ||2||2||

 

Respected Judge of the Court

V. L. Ruiker, Special court, Pune

Date 14–8-89

 

I, Harjinder Singh Jinda, son of Gulzar Singh ‘Gadli’ reside in Amritsar.

 

On 10th August 1986, I and Sukhdev Singh ‘Khalistani’, son of Sardar Mengha Singh of village 16FF Karanpur (Rajasthan) killed General Arun Kumar Vaidya. At that time, I was riding a black Indo Suzuki motorcycle. Sukhdev Singh was sitting behind me. Sukhdev Singh shot at Vaidya. Sukhdev Singh and I had at first gone to the house of Lieutenant General Ranjit Singh Dayal. We also intended to kill him because he too had a big hand in the attack on Sri Darbar Sahib. Then we went to the front of the evil Vaidya’s house and his car was about to drive out. We both followed his car and killed him.

 

The evil Vaidya was the Chief of the Indian Army. He had attacked our Sri Darbar Sahib Amritsar and forty other Gurdwaras. Sri Akaal Takht Sahib was demolished using tanks and canons. Thousands of Sikh men, women and children were martyred in utter cruelty. We regained our dignity and respect from this persecution by taking vengeance on Vaidya.

 

Some days ago, the ‘killer of Sikhs’ J. F. Ribeiro came to Bombay and he gave a statement to the press claiming that they have been engineering fake police encounters in Punjab. The police made a similar threat to try to intimidate us, that they would take us forcibly to Punjab and eliminate us in a fake police encounter or make the false claim that we had escaped from police custody. These pets of the Government do not know that Sikhs are not afraid of death! Death is loved by the Sikhs. Many social activists are sat in Bombay and inside wider India who self-proclaim that they fight for the rights of the people but they could not utter a single word against this tyrant Ribeiro, who has so shamelessly violated the rule of law. Damned be these social activists who seek only seats of power, are hungry for leadership positions and are becoming puppets of the Government.

 

The Government persecutes the Sikhs. This has also been laid wide open by police officer Chaman Lal. The Government and his superiors in the police force ordered him to unleash terror amongst the Sikh people. Chaman Lal refused to accept such an unethical order and exposed this nefarious activity of the Government before the people. From this it can be ascertained that the Government is persecuting the Sikhs in Punjab. The press also spoke in favor of the Government and condemned Chaman Lal. At this time, the evil K. P. S. Gill, D.G.P. of Punjab Police has tried to rob a female I.A.S. officer of her dignity. If this is the condition of the highest-ranking police officer, what might those of lower grades not be engaging in? The police themselves are robbing the dignity of women so that the Sikh masses of Punjab stand in opposition to the freedom fighting Sikhs. Sikhs of the Guru know that a Khalsa would never do such a thing. Every Sikh child knows of the dark deeds of this Government, so now the Sikhs will never fall into the traps of this tyrannical Government. Damned be this press that has become a toy in the hands of the Government and is defaming the Sikhs.

 

The Government cannot nullify the Sikhs by persecuting them. Hitler brutally murdered seven hundred thousand Jews. Hitler lost, however the Jews are ruling in Israel today. In this way the Sikhs too shall not come to an end. One day the saffron flag of the Khalsa shall be unfurled upon the throne of Delhi. The Sikhs shall not sit idly by, even as they spill blood drop by drop.

 

Until Khalistan is achieved, the fight will continue against these Hitler-like tyrants.

 

By exposing the dark deeds of the Government, Chaman Lal has proven that it is the Government who is engaged in terrorism, not the Sikhs. It is also clear from Ribeiro’s statement that it is the Government itself that is a terrorist.

 

The Rowlatt Act was enacted by the British during their rule in the subcontinent. The Congress party protested very strongly against it. Now the same Congress party Government has created ‘TADA’ (an act concerning anti-nationalism, terrorism and civil unrest). The Rowlatt Act is tame by comparison. If a hundred Rowlatt Acts were passed it would equate to just one TADA Act.

 

Now even the first class magistrates of this country provide false testimony in court, yet still this Government has given police officers the authority to testify and stated that the Court should accede to their witness statements. Police officers are just like K. P. S. Gill, robbing women of their dignity and considering it their honour to kill innocent people. Not only that, but under the guise of law today Sikhs are being persecuted.

 

The story of persecution does not end there. There is even persecution of Sikhs in prisons that has been done and is being done. In Punjab’s Sangrur jail many innocent Sikhs were brutally shot dead in broad daylight. Sukhdev Singh and Nirmal Singh were imprisoned for two and a half years and over a five month period were kept in solitary confinement twenty-four hours a day with their hands tied behind their back. It is not easy to speak of how they were mistreated in police custody. The same was meted out to Balwinder Singh. Sikhs are routinely tortured in police custody. Chief Ajmer Singh and all his brothers have been brutally martyred. Their limbs and body parts were cut one by one and shown to their father. He too was then also severely tortured and later sent to prison. Mathra Singh was also brutally martyred. The police could not even ask him his name. It was only after his martyrdom that it was discovered this was Mathra Singh. Anokh Singh Babbar, General Labh Singh, Charanjit Singh Talwandi and Gurdev Singh Satiavli, these and many other Sikhs were brutally martyred. Their bodies were pierced with burning hot rods and their limbs were broken. All of Nirmal Singh’s family were kept in prison for two and a half years without reason. His sister and her entire family remain in prison today. In response to this persecution, his nephews took up arms to fight back against these evildoers and have since been martyred. It is not just this one family, there are countless families who are locked up in prison or who have been martyred entirely. The Government cannot bring to an end the Sikhs because of such atrocities. How can the Sikh people forget such oppression? Sikhs shall avenge each and every one of these persecutions and injustices. So far the fire of vengeance has only begun smoldering. But one day this fire will rage as a storm and then no one will be able to put it out. Then there will be the end of this tyrannical government.

 

As the Government continues to persecute us, our spirits are high and are strong like a rock. When a sound hits the mountain it echoes, so does our sound resonate. Then Khalistan will be on the tongue of every Sikh child. Then this echo will shake the Government. The result will be Khalistan.

 

Whenever the Qaum needed to pay the price of blood,

That duty was taken up in the highest of spirits by the Khalsa.

Whenever a river of tyranny flowed,

The high-spirited Khalsa stepped forward first.

Whichever side the bullet comes from,

The first to take the hit on their chest is the Khalsa.

There is this one land in the World called Punjab,

Which dwells on the brink of death.

There is only one mother of the Khalsa who as the times heed,

Laughs in high spirits though her sons are martyred.

 

The blood of Sikhs that is being shed today will one day take the form of a river. Then the end of this tyrannical Government will come drowned in the river. Somebody has beautifully said:

 

Sikhs know that the value of their head will be sought,

History will repeat itself once and for all.

If we pay with our head a hundred thousand times, so be it,

We will rid ourselves of these shackles of slavery.

 

The spiritual path of this battle that we have taken is an immortal one. This path is our very life. To become the pioneers of this path, we have lived and expended many such lifetimes. Our death does not end our journey, rather one side is turned over. Our journey is spreading its light beyond the land of death.

 

Our fight is not against any religion or caste. Our fight is for truth and against oppression. Whatever wrongdoings are taking place in Punjab, such as the stealing of money from Sikhs and the killing of Sikhs for money, such wrongdoings are being done by Government agents. This is a great ploy of the Government to discredit the freedom fighting Singhs. The Sikhs of the Guru do no such wrong deeds, acting in accordance with Gurmat they fight against the wicked. The Government defames the Sikhs by calling us terrorists and anti-nationalists, though the Government itself is a terrorist.

 

We are proud of our history. Our Gurus, leaders, saints and pious individuals have shed blood in the foundations of this way of life in order to keep our history alive.

 

At this moment, the pen trembles as it narrates the persecution of the Sikhs. As a result, the children of the Sikh community have become ready to seek vengeance for the oppression they face.

 

The Government has tried hard to eradicate the Sikhs, but keeping in mind the idea, “When the edge of the arrow touched my body, it kindled my resentment”, Sikhs have instead run forward to embrace death.

 

Now our only intention is to win this Qaumi war or to die the death of a martyr.

 

A poet has so beautifully painted a vision on this and dissecting dignity he says:

Remove the veil of slavery

Kissing the hangman’s noose.

 

Because the pages of the Guru’s incomparable history bears witness, that the Tenth Master granted us divine status and great status by imprinting us with their divinity. I do not know how proudly he would have then said:

 

I shall empower the poor Sikhs to become the rulers of the land,

Khalsa is my true form, Within the Khalsa, I abide.

 

Not only this, when the Tenth Master was asked by Mata Jito Ji in a packed court, ‘where are my beloved sons, I cannot see them’, at that time the Guru showed how much pride and faith he has in us. He told Mata Jito ji in reply:

 

These four sons have given their heads in sacrifice,

But what of these four being dead, when thousands remain alive.

 

Our whole history is replete with sacrifices. Before constructing this palace of Sikhi, the tenth Master began by embedding those two young, tender souls who give us much courage as the bedrock of its foundations. The stormy winds of oppression and tyranny could not spoil this palace, despite the many conspiracies that have been hatched to eradicate it from 1699 to the present day. Following Sri Guru Gobind Singh Ji Maharaj, Banda Singh Bahadur, Jassa Singh Ramgarhia, Baba Deep Singh Ji, Bhai Mani Singh Ji and many other Singhs gave their blood, flesh and bones to this palace so that it does not fall.

 

Then Massa Ranghar tried to tarnish this magnificent palace. Do you know that at that time, two Khalsas from Buddha Johad obeyed the order of Nawab Kapur Singh, did Ardas to the Almighty to bless their journey, and prepared themselves to execute the evil Massa Ranghar; they beheaded him and then these sons of Punjab walked out into the open singing the slogans of the Timeless One with his head atop a spear. Thereafter this palace of Sikhi flourished, grew and began to touch its peak. After the reign of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, our status has maintained its splendour as those arose when needed from time to time.

 

Then the pride of our Qaum, the embodiment of peace and revolution (Sant Jarnail Singh Ji Khalsa Bhindranwale) arose from the Damdami Taksal, and shook the dying conscience of the Sikhs challenging us to preserve this heritage. Once again the pages of history were repeated. Sri Harimandir Sahib was attacked. And then the Singhs in Delhi hailed a cacophonous event (Shaheed Satwant Singh, Shaheed Beant Singh). History was repeated. The Singhs issued that tyrant Indira’s travelling tickets to the beyond and sent her to the land of the ghosts.

 

Now came the turn of the evil General Vaidya who executed and planned the attack. He had used many tricks to escape. In the end, playing hide-and-seek this evil-doer, the murderer of innocent children, settled in Pune. The ticking time of mortality wavered upon his head. There was nothing more to it; the evildoer was put to sleep forevermore. Our legacy may go back a long way, but it’s result is that which is engraved on the walls of our hearts.

 

The worldly journey of a human being is successful only when the Guru approves. The great Guru has espoused in Gurbani:

 

First, accept death, and give up any hope of life.

Become the dust of the feet of all, and then, you may come to me. ||1||

 

With this in mind the great Guru explains:

 

If you desire to play this game of love with Me,

then step onto My Path with your head in hand.

When you place your feet on this Path,

give Me your head, and do not pay any attention to public opinion. ||20||

 

Thus, the Guru’s Sikhs accept death with a smile and say with every breath, ‘May the Panth flourish, and I dissolve’.

 

Shaking and trembling is not conducive to the nature of Sikhi. Tyrants, oppressive regimes and dictators cannot even bend a single hair of those who have the Supreme Soul on their mind.

One who belongs to the All-powerful Lord and Master –

no one can destroy him.

 When You are on my side, Lord, what do I need to worry about?

You entrusted everything to me, when I became Your slave.

 

Guru Sahib said, “That humble being, upon whom You bestow Your Grace, is not touched by slander or suffering” and in writing this he concluded that those on whom the Lord is merciful, do not suffer harassment. So the order of the true Guru Ji is:

 

The death of brave heroes is blessed, if it is approved by God.

 

The lives of heroes and heroines may be restricted by time, but theirs is authentic living, in dignity and righteousness maintaining their hair and conduct with every breath. That is why someone has said:

 

ਜਨਨੀ ਜਨੈ ਤਾ ਭਗਤ ਜਨ ਕੈ ਦਾਤਾ ਕੈ ਸੂਰ।

ਨਾਹਿ ਤਾ ਜਨਨੀ ਬਾਝ ਰਹੈ ਕਾਹੇ ਗਵਾਵੈ ਨੂਰ।।

 

Martyrdom is priceless and its status is unalterable. Even the deities and incarnations crave it, but it is only in the destiny of a fortunate person. Where the Guru’s Sikh is brave and righteous, at the same time he/she is patient. Gurbani strengthens our resolve and faith with which we attain a stage of consciousness to appreciate that “the Divine will seems sweet”. Then the human mind finds a parallel between misery and contentment. “One who knows that pain and pleasure are both the same…”, “Pleasure and pain are the two garments given…”, and “If You seat me on the throne, then I am Your slave. If You make me a grass-cutter, then what can I say?” is the ultimate state of mind, brought about by contemplation on the Name which is the medicine for all ailments, and this is the alternating and pain-killing chemical with which the mind, intellect, and conceptual, spiritual and physical pains are vanquished forever. The Guru’s word is the life-blood and nourishment of the Sikhs. Just as hunger does not dissipate without food, spiritual contentment is not fulfilled without Gurbani. By contemplating the Name, fear of death and life disappears. In this way the Guru’s Sikh works to serve the people of the world and departs from this mortal realm making it a better place.

 

The tyrannical government of our times has thrown us into the cage of slavery. It is of no consequence for one day the bars of these cages will be cracked and broken. Then that bride called freedom will light up our courtyard. Then the shackles and handcuffs of this tyrannical regime and its blood-thirsty agents shall not constrain the Singhs.

 

In closing, “By the grace of the Timeless One, Victory will be ours” is destined to manifest one day. The fathers of the nation, the archers, the leaders will come forward. “Coming in seventy-eight, they will depart in ninety-seven, and then another disciple of man will rise up” is an injunction from Gurbani. The road is hard but ultimately victory lies with the truth. No one can avoid it. The throne and the crown shall be adorned in Kesri. Then the Guru’s army will sit on the throne at Delhi. They will rule greatly, there will be a great freedom and “the Khalsa will rule, none shall defy it”, will all come to pass.

 

Khalistan Zindabad!

 

Bhai Harjinder Singh Jinda (detainee)

Yerawada Intermediate Jail

Pune (Maharashtra)