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POLITICS tN -CONTPOER MAR ¥ (4 35 ley
THE
SIKAS::: PUNJAB
UNHEARD VOICES OF STATE AND GUERRILLA VIOLENCE
JOYCE J M PETTIGREW
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Dr Joyce J.M. Pettigrew is a Scottish anthropologist. Educated at
the University of Manchester, she was a Research Associate at
the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) for three years
before joining the staff of Queen’s University, Belfast, where she
is now Reader in Anthropology. The Punjab has long been the
main site of her social research and she is the author of the
highly acclaimed Robber Noblemen: A Study of the Political System of
the Sikh Fats (Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1975).
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THE SIKHS OF THE
PUNJAB
UNHEARD VOICES OF STATE AND
GUERRILLA VIOLENCE
Joyce J.M. Pettigrew
@
Zed Books Ltd
LONDON AND NEW JERSEY
To my mother in special memory
The Sikhs of the Punjab was first published by
Zed Books Ltd, 7 Cynthia Street, London N1 gJF, UK,
and 165 First Avenue, Atlantic Highlands,
New Jersey 07716, USA, in 1995.
Copyright © Joyce J.M. Pettigrew, 1995.
Cover designed by Andrew Corbett.
Set in Monotype Baskerville by Ewan Smith.
Map on page vi reproduced, by kind permission of
Mark Tully, from Amritsar by Mark Tully and Satish
Jacob (London, Jonathan Cape, 1985).
Printed and bound in the United Kingdom
by Biddles Ltd, Guildford and King’s Lynn.
The right of Joyce J.M. Pettigrew to be identified as
the author of this work has been asserted by her in
accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents
Act, 1988.
_ All rights reserved.
A catalogue record for this book is available from
the British Library,
US CIP data is available from the Library of Congress.
ISBN 1 85649 355 5 cased
ISBN 1 85649 356 3 limp
Contents
Map vi
Preface Vii
Acknowledgements 1X
Glossary
Abbreviations xl
PART ONE. The Sikhs of Punjab: Place and
People since 1984
State Terror
The Rise of Resistance, Political and Militant 30
The Guerrilla Movement HN)
History and Organisation of the Khalistan
HONHmO
Commando Force 82
Police, Guerrillas and Local Populations 103
PART TWO Children of Waheguru 30
Introduction 137
Profiles of Khalistan Commando Force Guerrillas:
‘Sparrows into Hawks’ 143
Concluding Remarks 187
Appendix One 199
Appendix ‘Two 201
Bibliography 203
207
Index
Indian Punjab and neighbouring provinces, post-1966
vi
Preface
It seems a long time since the renowned South Asian poet, Faiz Ahmed
Faiz, lamenting the division of the erstwhile Punjab, said to me ‘Pun-
jabis will always get together over dharu [country liquor] for, after all,
a friend is a friend, whatever their personal politics.’ Indeed neither the
separatism of the Muslims, nor that of the Sikhs, has been particularly
in keeping with the atmosphere of the Punjab plains. Yet both — one
with a religious identity, the other with a national identity — have had
their reasons for pursuing this form of politics, reasons which were
determined beyond the land of the five rivers. This book deals with the
nature of Sikh resistance to the Indian state in the years 1984-92. In
times to come, if the self-reflection is deep enough and the dialogue
broad enough, these years will be seen as the first phase of that re-
sistance. Much of what is described can be regarded as behaviour under
occupation: the familiar problems of very ordinary people in keeping
themselves alive through times of terror, while attempting in some cases,
but not all, to retain dignity as they know it.
Part of the book consists of interviews with a small number of ideo-
logically committed people who are members of the Khalistan Com-
mando Force, Zaffarwal (KCF), the original parent guerrilla grouping.
These interviews are portrayals by guerrillas of their own movement.
They may be seen as their diary of a particular time: 1984-92. By
presenting these interviews in full, I am according their words no special
sanctity. However, I am giving them prominence since their voices have
not previously been heard at all.
The interviews were recorded on tape, and my main debt of grati-
tude is to Ajit Singh Khera, who made the recordings. There have
been only minor amendments to ensure ease of reading. It is important
to have this historical record, as all but two of those interviewed are
now dead. Their words are preceded by the text of five chapters which
seek to explain the conditions of life in the Punjab rural areas from
1984 onwards, the principal political developments, the history of the
guerrilla movement, especially of the KCF (Zaffarwal) and the relations
vil
vill PREFACE
between people, police and guerrillas. These chapters present additional
material in so far as they refer to events prior to a particular guerrilla’s
involvement or subsequent to his killing. The book details the effects of
this resistance, together with the repressive tactics it has provoked, on
the condition of the people. It is not purely an academic work. It has
been impossible to keep it so. For the words of a dignified ex-serviceman
remain in my heart: ‘It is a relief to see that God has sent you to hear
our gagged voice.’
The large amount of case material presented highlights the con-
tinuing savagery in the state. Unfortunately, because of the continuing
civil war it has not been possible to analyse this with any investigative
depth in the conventional anthropological manner.
