http://whatholdsthefuture.blogspot.com/2015/08/global-resurgence-of-khalistan-movement.html
The political pundits and gurus of India knows for a fact that "Khalistan" issue is going to be a big factor in the 2017 elections at Indian Punjab. The resurgence of Khalistan post 2012 is the biggest headache for the Indian union after India forcibly quashed the movement in 1984 "operation Blue Star". Thousands of Indian Sikh youth joined the cause of Khalistan calling for a separate state for the Sikhs of Indian Punjab as a result of the mass killing of Sikh separatists in 1984 through military action by Indian Army. These Sikh youth were persecuted by the Indian state while most flee to Canada and UK to seek political asylum there. Indian government did not spare even those Sikh separatist living abroad like prominent Khalistan movement leader Harpal Singh Cheema who spent half of his life in jails across India and California on charges of supporting Khalistan. However, such Sikhs like Harpal Singh Cheema after getting out from jail regrouped and launched a political struggle for Khalistan yet again in India. The Khalistan movement has a mega support base in Canada and Europe on account of Sikhs forced to settle there as political refugees of Khalistan cause escaping persecution by the Indian state. The UK most recently lifted the 15 year old ban on the International Sikh Youth Federation(ISYF), an international organization of Sikhs working for the creation of Sikh independent state in India. ISYF was banned by western countries including Japan under the terrorism laws. The lifting of ISYF ban in the UK will give an immense boost to the Khalistan cause around the globe having its direct implications in India.
Khalistan is expected to become the biggest fault-line of the Indian union in near future. Indian state has itself to blame for bringing the situation to where it stands now. The decision by Indra Gandhi, the slain Indian Prime Minister to take the Sikh insurgency head on using ruthless force at Punjab in the early 1980s proved highly counterproductive. It not only turned the undecided Sikh youth in favour of an independent Sikh state, Khalistan, but Indra Gandhi also had to pay for her authoritarian decisions with her life, while her official Sikh body guards shot her in broad day light at her own residence. That proved yet again, that one man's terrorist is another man's hero. After almost three decades the once forcibly quashed independence movement of the Indian Sikh society is seeing an unprecedented resurgence. The Indian state reply to the political awakening at Indian Punjab is typical while they blame Pakistan for exporting drugs and supporting Indian Sikh militancy for the cause of Khalistan. However, there is a huge grey area in the Indian justification for the global resurgence of Khalistan. The Khalistan cause and its resurgence is almost non violent and very much political in nature. If history of sub-continent teaches us a lesson, first would be that the cause of partition of united India in 1947 was a result of a mass political movement after militancy failed to achieve the same. Indian union beside these fault-lines in Kashmir, Nagaland, Manipur, Tripura, Aassam and Mizoram have a serious issue in Punjab. While the earlier stated areas are easily controlled by India through their draconian law allowing any number of human rights violations known as Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA), Punjab is all together a different ball game. Application of AFSPA is the least likely option for Punjab. As a dominant majority of Indian Army fighting strength belong to the Sikh community and considering their previous reaction to military action in Punjab resulting in the murder of their Prime Minister by her Sikh bodyguards, Indian government and Army will think more then twice to adopt any harsh measure like implantation of AFSPA in Punjab. Otherwise the latest resurgence of Khalistan is a political cause after the Khalistan movement leadership has matured by three decades of beating and persecution by the Indian state.
Indian held Kashmir is also not very far from Indian Punjab, where the independence movement by Muslims of Kashmir who form more then 80% of that state has fully matured into a freedom movement recognized globally. The Kashmir separatist movement is however at a major disadvantage being a Muslim freedom struggle. Being a Muslim freedom struggle in Hindu majority state of India, Kashmir and her Muslims are dispensable through AFSPA. But when it comes to Sikhs in Indian Punjab, they might be a minority, but they form the trade mark brand of united India with all the Sikh turbans being flashed around the globe to create the Indian identity. Moreover, Indian Sikhs are an influential class and forms the backbone of Indian Armed Forces. This situation leaves very little to no room for the Indian state to apply their high handed tactic like AFSPA to neutralize the resurgence of Khalistan.
If we study the response of Indian educated middle class and their reaction to the political awakening in Indian Punjab with regards to the Khalistan issue, two major reactions may be observed. First you will find the argument that is all Pakistan's fault that Khalistan is even an issue in India for the Sikhs, and second argument which is equally absurd is where the Indian middle class completely denies the issue even exists but is just an excuse by the Punjabi population to avoid facing issues like drug abuse and corruption in Punjab. On the contrary to the Indian thoughts, Khalistan has grown to become the mainstream political issue in Punjab which will greatly influence the Assembly elections there in 2017.
The Khalistan leadership has evidently evolved and is mature enough to separate the armed struggle for Khalistan in the past from the political movement for khalistan and the strategy is paying them rich div-dents. Under the Indian constitution and law a political struggle which does not challenge the writ of the government through armed resistance like in the past cannot be made to shut up through force. The question of recognition of Sikhism as a separate religion from Hinduism and the Indian state persecution of the Sikh community supporting Khalistan in the 1980s and 1990s are deep rooted issues, how so ever they may be denied by the modern Indian middle classes.
Pakistan lost its influence and seized support to the Khalistan movement once the government of Benazir Bhutto back stabbed the Khalistan movement by surrendering the name of prominent under cover Sikh freedom fighters to Rajiv Ghandi. These Sikh leaders who were supported by Pakistan during the khalistan insurgency were mercilessly eliminated along with their families by the Indian state.
This time around, the Khalistan movement is essentially political in nature focusing on core Sikh nationalistic issues deeply influenced from the Khalistan liberation movement of the recent past. This political movement will only gain momentum on the basis of regionalism and identity issues. If tried to be thwarted by high handed use of illogical means by Indian state and her pseudo nationalist crowd, the Khalistan movement may bloom out to be a full scale insurgency once more. However, this time round if it happens, the Indian state won't be able to afford to quash any such insurgency, keeping in view the information technology age and international pressures resulting from such free flow of information beside the strong Sikh global community.
In coming years, Indian state will have to accord more autonomy to the Sikhs if they need them to stay in the Indian union. Sikhs have a long and glorious traditions of ruling united India and self rule forms part of their religion too. Hundred of thousands of Sikh, essentially the youth participate in the Khalistan political rallies, which may be ignored by the Hindu majority in India, but the Indian Punjab remains the home grounds of the Sikh community who are the one that really matter with regards the fate and atmosphere on these strategic lands in the Indian union.
India can not indefinitely ignore the issues like Khalistan and Kashmir. These are genuine indigenous issues like the Maoist insurgency and likewise separatist movements in India. There is a limit for any state for quashing the legitimate demands of their population through force alone. Pakistan proved the point in case where the use of force alone failed to suppress the Indian funded and fully supported insurgency in Baluchistan. However, at present Baluchistan is all together a different story with all walks of Baluchi people forming part of the reformation process in the Pakistani province. Pakistan achieved this seemingly impossible task in the face of all adversity through pardoning the Baluch separatists as a one time measure and reintegrating them into the fabric of society. Baluch nationalist leadership was brought into the executive fold of the provincial government to allow them to achieve what all they desired for the progress of their people. Its an ongoing process, however, Pakistan achieved their goal while blunting the Indian efforts and investments to destabilize Pakistan.
If India fails to learn her lessons and keep on pursuing the agenda of "Akhand Baharat" through any means at their disposal like the Ajit Doval theories, it will only backfire in the face of Indian state reversing the progress India made economically and elsewhere. Khalistan like Kashmir and other Indian separatist movements are a reality at place in India. These are quintessential Indian fault lines waiting to be exploited or exploded by the forces within and outside India if Indian state keeps on ignoring them and brushing the same under the carpet through stereotype response using brute force.
Khalistan movement in its present form is a political movement spearheaded by well linked and highly groomed Sikh leadership with global connections. Sikh nation can not be ignored by Indian state and the khalistan political movement's leadership will exploit the bad governance of Punjabi/Sikh politicians currently holding provincial powers there. The adverse state of governance, and related issues including rampant drug abuse problems will be used for political point scoring by the Khalistan leadership to gain ascendancy in the Provincial politics. This will eventually bring them into provincial government. From there on, it would be out of the control of Indian state to dictate terms to Khalistan leadership and many more allowances will have to be accorded to Khalistan political leadership meeting their demands. This would provide a legitimate precedence to the Kashmir and other freedom struggles in India to follow suit.
Indian federation will have to decentralize her draconian hold over the masses it rules and accord their legitimate demands while their external desires of regional hegemony through direct and indirect interference in neghbouring states will have to be subsided if ever India wish a prosperous future for her indigenous population. India may think that using her newly fond fortunes, they can buy influence in the region and stir trouble for those states in the region not towing their lines. But all such actions have serious and equal repercussions, for nation-states fight for their survival especially once cornered through force. Playing with fire always and forever have harmful repercussions as Pakistanis found out after the end of cold war once their own trained and funded Jihadist turned on them. India is likewise funding and making their own Frankenstein which would eventually come back to haunt them.
Khalistan political struggle aims to provide the distinct identity to the Sikh nation who ruled India and parts of Afghanistan in not so distant past. By doing so, khalistan leadership is only directed towards gaining momentum and further support adding misery to the Indian desires of total hegemony in South Asia and countering the rise of China as a super power. India has enough fault-lines of its own which may be exploited by her enemies if India persists to follow the policies of confrontation with her neighbours like China and Pakistan. Movements like Khalistan and Kashmir beside several other separatist struggles in India are the valid fault-lines waiting to be exploited by those who India antagonizes with their clandestine tactics taught by their political guru, "Chankiya". However, the great political philosopher of subcontinent also said, Learn from the mistakes of others, you can't live long enough to make them all yourself. India needs to learn from the Pakistani experience of playing with fire when they created the Jihadists alongside USA to counter USSR. The same lot came back to burn Pakistan in blood and fire while Pakistan continuously struggle to fight their Frankenstein while trying to reverse the ideology which created the monster in the first place. Pakistan also failed to quell the Baluchistan insurgency funded by India through Iran, until the time they abandoned the use of brute force and initiated a political process. This political process engulfed all the nationalist and separatist leadership with their pawns into the Pakistani national fabric knowing the perks of being part of a strong nation-state. India needs to realize that by alienating the nationalist causes like Khalistan and Kashmir, it won't achieve positive results for the Indian state, but doing the exact opposite would surely bound the separatist leaders in the Indian national fiber. Concessions will have to be made, and the same concessions would form the capital on which everlasting peace in the entire region would be founded ensuing an era of prosperity for all in the most populous region of the world.
