SAD, other outfits raise pro-Khalistani slogans on Operation Blue Star anniversary | India News – Times of India

NEW DELHI: As Thursday marked the 40th anniversary of Operation Blue Star, pro-Khalistani slogans were raised by various outfits including Shiromani Akali Dal (Amritsar) and Dal Khalsa, with some carrying Khalistani flag and images depicting a damaged Akal Takht.
Dal Khalsa members were spotted holding signs with the images of Khalistani separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, who was assassinated in Canada last year, and militant leader Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, who died.
Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Raghbir Singh addressed the Sikh community in a message, stating that two Sikhs who emergedvictorious in the Lok Sabha elections as Independents ought to speak up in Parliament in favor of the release of “Bandhi Singhs,” or Sikh inmates who have served their full sentences. He was referring to Sarabjeet Singh Khalsa, the son of former prime minister Indira Gandhi’s killer Beant Singh, and hardline Sikh preacher Amritpal Singh.
Khalidkot was won by Khalsa, while Khadoor Singh Lok Sabha seat went to Amritpal Singh, the leader of the ‘Waris Punjab De’ group, who is presently being held in Assam’s Dibrugarh jail under the National Security Act.
The Jathedar honored the families of Bhindranwale and his allies in the Akal Takht on this day, declaring them to be “martyrs” for their deaths during Operation Bluestar in 1984.
A bullet struck the “saroop,” which at the time was housed in the Golden Temple’s sanctum sanctorum, during the 1984 Army raid. In June 1984, the Army conducted Operation Bluestar to drive armed militantsout of the Golden Temple.
(With inputs from agencies)