Mass Grave of Sikhs discovered in Haryana

MASS GRAVE OF "SIKHS" KILLED IN NOVEMBER 1984 DISCOVERED IN HARYANA AFTER 26 YEARS

A mass Grave of Sikhs killed in November 1984 has been discovered after 26 years in village Hondh-Chillar, District Rewari, Haryana. The village was inhibited by several Sikh families and on November 02, 1984 in an organized and well planned attack, the entire village was burnt along with its Sikh population and Gurudwara. The village consisting of torched houses, burnt Gurudwara and scattered human bones has been now been discovered.

As per attorney Gurpatwant Singh Pannun Legal Advisor to Sikhs For Justice, the forlorn debris and human remains at village Hondh-Chillar discovered after 26 years are the most specific and convincing evidence of Sikhs localities being attacked and wiped out throughout India in a identical pattern. The evidence discovered on site indicates systematic pattern in which armed groups lead by Congress Leaders would cordon Sikh neighborhoods, rape the women and burn the men and children alive. "The discovery of Mass Grave of Sikhs in Haryana proves that Nanavati Commission's scope of inquiry into the killing of Sikhs was gravely insufficient and eyewash because the commission did not look into killings of Sikhs that took place outside Delhi", added attorney Pannun.

According to Karnail Singh Peermohammad scores of Sikhs living in the village were burnt to death on November 02, 1984 and the Police neither identified the dead nor investigated the killing of Sikhs. According to the FIR filed by Ghanpat Singh Sarpanch and other eyewitnesses, the Sikh population of the village was attacked on November 02, 1984 by a group of about 500 people who came in Trucks and were armed. The group was shouting "Ye Sardar Ghaddar hain, Inn ko khatam karain ge" (These Sardars are traitors and we will wipe them out).

Echoing a shock felt by numerous international human rights organizations and activists, Jatinder Singh of Sikhs For Justice added "It is unthinkable the way in which these Sikhs must have been systematically targeted and subjected to the most gruesome methods of mass killing known to humankind. It is horrifying to think that these murders took place with state complicity through carefully orchestrated genocidal acts by armed groups of Indian men, transported from village to village by the state." Adding to this shock, Jatinder Singh also cited that, "An entire village ethnically cleansed of a religious minority is the gravest violation of human rights and the most clearest proof of the Sikh Genocide. The innocent families of Hondh-Chillar village, mothers, fathers, brothers and sisters were all exterminated simply because of their religious beliefs differed from the majority of India."

In addition to the statements made by AISSF and SFJ, researchers have brought forth information that on November 02, 1984 attackers surrounded Sikh houses and attacked by throwing petrol bombs into Sikh homes. Men and children were beaten and thrown into the burning houses and women were first raped and then thrown into the fire. The Sri Guru Granth Sahib was also desecrated and Gurudwara was put on fire as indication of the murderous rage of the mob, looking to destroy any and all traces of Sikh identity.

In light of the recent discovery, AISSF and Sikhs for Justice (SFJ) will approach United Nations, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and South Asian Human Rights Commission to visit the site of Sikh Mass Graves in village Hondh-Chillar and investigate the attack on Sikhs that took place throughout India in November 1984. The genocidal site of village Hondh-Chillar is discovered by the sustained and unceasing efforts of Engineer Manvinder Singh Giaspur