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Journalism of Courage
Today an entire generation of Indians takes peace in Punjab for granted and would find the term 8216;Khalistan8217; a curious construct. This in itself is testimony to the fact that the country has successfully left behind a tragic and bloody interregnum in its history. The death of the man who once proclaimed himself 8216;president8217; of the 8216;republic of Khalistan8217; and who had three decades ago hoisted the flag of Khalistan from Anandpur Sahib comes as a reminder of this emphatic closure.
Jagjit Singh Chohan8217;s idea of Khalistan was anchored on Hindu-Sikh antagonism. He died in a Punjab which had just voted to power 8212; for the second time in 10 years 8212; a Sikh-Hindu political alliance which signals that old fissures have healed. The failure of Chohan8217;s political project was in many respects the triumph of a democratic Indian state because it could not, ultimately, turn ordinary Sikhs against ordinary Hindus. Punjab of the eighties and early nineties was nightmare country: the excesses of Operation Blue Star, political assassinations, including that of a prime minister, unrelenting terrorist violence and the unravelling of peace initiatives led to the entire state, and the Sikh community in particular, paying a terrible price. Looking back, there came a point in this ugly war when the militants got the message that the Indian state had the strength, resources and determination to defeat them. It needed political will and patience to carry on with the fight until that inflexion point was reached. It needed political sagacity to recognise that moment and respond with civil society initiatives of reconciliation, including that of an election.
