AMRITSAR DEPRIVED OF A ROYAL VISIT
Dr Kailash Maini
(Some Indian extremist groups had opposed the proposed visit of Queen Elizabeth. The queen itinery was thus cancelled. Later on how ever the itinery was reconsidered and the queen did visit Amritsar. This story focuses why the Queen cancelled visit.)
For the golden jubilee celebrations of lndias lndependence Britain had earlier assured lndia of the visit ol its head of Monarchy Queen Elizabeth in the month of Oct. 97.
Representatives of
about 10,000 strong Sikh population in UK on the other hand had been impressing
upon the lsland Govt. to return the holy Sikh relics which it took away at the time
of annexation of the Punjab in 1849 AD.
On July 22 the British High Commissioner visited Amritsar along
with 12 members in an advance party led by Queens Deputy private secretary Mr.
Robbin Janvrin and informed the Sikh authorities of the Queens impending itinery
and that the Queen was to bring with her the Kalgi or the plume which once
adorned the holy turban of Guru Gobind Singh and wai to hand over the kalgi to
SGPC authorities at the time of her visit to the Golden Temple, the Mecca of
the Sikhs.
It appears before this news could fully spread among the
Sikh masses, the Home Ministrys desk on Punjab affairs was perhaps alarmed and-
felt some sort of danger to the peace which it had been able to restore in the
state.
Before the pro Sikh
news papers could carry the news on Queens visit. The nationalist and pro- communist
papers got over splashed with the statements condemning the Queens visit. The anti-visit
lobby (AVL) took the plea that the Queen must apologize for the excesses
committed by the British Raj. The AVL projected the 1919 incidence of
Jallianwala Bagh Amritsar where 379 unarmed and peaceful people mostly Sikhs
were massacred.
The first person of AVL to get his name printed in the
dailies of the Punjab was a professoi of Ludhiana who claimed that he was the
nephew of Sardar Bhagat Singh, the lndian revolutionary, who was hanged in 1930
for murdering some English officers of the Raj. An Akali later remarked that ironically
the relatives of this man had been desperately trying for the British Visas and
some were comfortably in jobs in the UK.
A Queen and Golden Temple- The Hindustan Times on Aug. 24 carried such a blend of photographs. On Queens visit Amritser would have been-the centre stage for the world media. |
Luxmi Kanta Chawla
the fire brand BJp leader of Amritsar was second to. condemn the visit of the Queen
and demanded an unqualified apology from the Queen. There after keeping in view
the attitude of the nationalist dailies every one who-so- ever wanted his name
in the print sent threatening press
notes and saw his name on the following
day. In this list were included the heads of otherwise unheard ogranisations like the Rashtriya Sikh Sangat of Mohinder Singh Gehla. Hindu Shiv Sena leaders once again got a golden opportunity in the Queen visit to say something to the press. Youth Congress of the Amritsar threatened that the Queen will have to cross the
ocean of blood if she visited Amritsar.
They also pooh-poohed the Sikh leaders who demanded the return of the relics.
Except a single
statement by G.S.Tohra,the head of the
Sikh apex body the SGPC no Sikh ever spoke
until Aug. 20, when the nationalis!
dailies carried headlines QUEEN NOT TO
VISIT AMRITSAR. The lndian prime
Minister lnder Kumar Gujral in an
interview with the correspondent of Sunday
Observer advised the Queen not to visit
Amritsar. Following the advice of the PM
to the Queen that she had better not visit
Amritsar, Tohra saw a conspiracy through
the demand of apology to scuttle the
visit of the Queen there after only Badal demanded that the Queen should visit Amritsar.
Before Britain could decide on the issue of apology which it had been duly considering, as the Monarch had her self apologised to the Maori Tribe of New Zealand and her government apologised
on yet another occasion. Not only this
the British High Commissioner Sir David
Gore Booth during his preliminary survey
of Amritsar had duly visited Jallianwala Bagh and left a note of regret and
over the incident. An otherwise voluntary apology from the Queen was thus very much
there. Yet the Prime Ministers advice to the Monarchy surprised everybody.
The national papers were surprised not at the advice but at
the mahner in which it had been publicly conveyed. The Tribune remarked
"Mr. Gujral- should severely ration his-time spent on the media
interviews. There must be more to a Prime Minister than mere statements.
An official of the
Buckingham Palace remarked that the lndian Governments change of mind has put them
in an awkward position especially when Tony Blairs Govt was already considering some. expression of Royal
apology during the on coming visit.
All this noise successfully managed to drag leaders like
George Fernandese too who lost no time to criticise Gujral for such a public
advice to the Queen. Without mincing words he said that it was "wholly
undiplomatic on the part of a man who is propounding doctrines on diplomacy and
who is touted as a great diplomat. The Hindustan Times wrote,"There is unanimity
among leaders and everybody over criticising Mr. Gujrals move".
Mr. J.N.Dixit. the former diplomat however said, "What
our PM has said is very practical solution given the geographical location of
the Jallianwala Bagh. But l wish he had not given this advice publicly".
Eminent journalist Kuldip Nayyar too defended the pM.
Khushwant Singh too was consulted and spoke judiciously, All
those demanding an apology are damn silly people. When you invite somebody to
the country, it is bad on your part to behave in such a manner. Her coming here
in itself is a gesture of goodwill, friendship, an act I would say all those demanding apology
are non descript people hungry for publicity from any means possible".
George Fernandes questioned Gujral and his predecessor Mr.
Deve Gowda as to why they have not apologized during their visits to the Golden
Temple. He says "l believe that an apology to the Sikhs was called for the
holocaust they were subjected to in Delhi". Opposing the demand for an
apology from the Queen he adds, "you cannot apologize for something which
your ancestors have done".
Dr. G.S. Dhillon, a Sikh scholar and writer has also
criticized the AVL and said, "those who demand an apology from the Queen
should also apply the same rationale to ask for a similar apology from the
central Government for the army action at Darbar Sahib, an event of much bigger
magnitude than the 1919 firing. Dhillon writes, "The British regime had
bowed to the demand to appoint a commission of enquiry-the Hunter Commission to
go into the circumstances leading to the event. The Government of lndias refusal
to appoint a commission to explain as to what happened before, during and after
Blue star seems a confession of failure (or guilt).
Now considering that the prime Minister of the host country
has advised the guest to drop her visit, it is fikely that the royal guest will
not visit Amritsar despite fervent demand of the Sikh NRls in the UK. We may bury the issue like an
ostrich but certain questions. which the proposed visit has raked would remain
and haunt till resolved.
As we know the AVL consists of such elements which routinely
serve the nationalist cause by lending their voice to the forces which fought terrorism
it thus makes clear that there is something more than the mere apology demand
Only assumption that one thus can arrive at is that the security forces
consider the visit of Queen as a sort of moral booster for the secessionist
Sikhs. lf this is the case with the Govt approach it is then highly sad as that
would amount to the suspicion of whole Sikh community including Badal and the
Sikhs as the Ex. CM Mrs. Rajinder Kaur Bhathal has also denounced the AVL and demanded
that the Queen should come.
It needs to be reminded that it was this over suspicion
which led to denial of carving of the Punjabi speaking state for so many years
i.e. from 1948 to 1966. Such a suspicious approach strengthens the hands of
those who felt deranged.
A daily of this region which
behaves as if it is the sole saviour of the nation and would even go to
the extent of implanting bogus stories poked its nose once again by printing a the
Queens visit issue, it said that Badal was unhappy over the Queens visit that
Tohra would steal the show.
n
analytical story which promoted a
Amritsar has lost an
opportunity to be in the world news and the Sikhs have lost substantially as
they would have to wait for indefinite and uncertain periods for the return of the
kalgi which is presently preserved in the Victoria and Albert Museum London.
It is almost now a
week that no further development in sight as to her visit except that
unfortunate paris accident in which the princess Diana lost her illustrious
life and this may provide the Monarchy with an easy excuse in cancelling the
visit.
lnspite of all this some of the circles are still hopeful of
the visit and believe that Her Royal Highness will not cancel her visit not
withholding Gujarals warning.
1 comment:
This is so complicated issue to know because so many people were waiting for this visit for a long time. Rephraser reviews had some predictions about this event but didn't want to believe in such gossips. However now we need to wait for another big occasion.
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