It is a sheer coincidence that the reconstruction of the Akal Takht in Amritsar begins on the same day (January 26) on which Chandigarh is to be handed over to Punjab. But it is an interesting coincidence. It demonstrates that Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi’s efforts to please the Akalis and thereby to mitigate the militancy of the extremists among them have not fully succeeded. Several points are notable in connection with the plan to rebuild the Akal Takht. First, January 26 was chosen as the date for the start of ‘Kar Seva’ by the Damdami Taksal (read followers of Bhindranwale) and the militant All India Sikh Students’ Federation as part of a deliberate defiance of the Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC) headed by Mr. G.S. Tohra who is currently cooperating with the Punjab Chief Minister, Mr. Barnala. The SGPC was to begin the ‘Kar Seva’ on January 27. Secondly, the SGPC and the youth wing of the Akali Dal tried to prevent the Damdami Taksal and the Sikh Students’ Federation from seizing the Akal Takht so much so that firing was exchanged between the two sides and the police had to intervene. Thirdly, instead of persisting with the effort to keep the militants out, Mr. Tohra and Mr. Badal have chosen to surrender in the name of the unity of the panth. This is reminiscent of the manner in which the moderate Akali leadership had earlier allowed itself to be manipulated by Bhindranwale and his murderous gang, enabling him to turn the Golden Temple complex into a fortress-headquarters for a campaign of assassinations. On a surface view, the situation now is different inasmuch as the Akalis are in power in Chandigarh and the government in New Delhi is well disposed towards them. But these differences might not suffice to take care of the militants and their long-term separatist designs.
There is genuine scope for differences of opinion on the decision to pull down the Akal Takht which had been damaged during Operation Bluestar and then repaired under Baba Santa Singh’s auspices at considerable cost to the nation. If the decision is an affront to the Union government, it can well be argued that in view of the hurt to the Sikh psyche caused by Operation Bluestar, the SGPC had no choice but to bring down the Akal Takht and build it anew. But the initiative has passed to the militants. The five-member committee of Sikh sants which is to supervise the reconstruction does not contain a single representative ofthe SGPC. It is obvious that Mr. Tohra has been outwitted and that he and Mr. Barnala have had to acquiesce in an embarrassing arrangement. As it is, there was enough evidence to show that the extremists remain active and determined in Punjab. They have now demonstrated their capacity to force the Akali Dal and the SGPC to beat a hasty retreat. This cannot augur well for peace in Punjab.