1984 Anti-Sikh Riots Victims’ Families Burn Copies of Sonia’s Memoir in Delhi

New Delhi , November 13: Families of victims of the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, along with members of the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (DSGMC), on Thursday staged a protest at Gurdwara Rakab Ganj Sahib in New Delhi and burned copies of Congress leader Sonia Gandhi’s memoir, Belonging: A Journey of Love.

 

The protest was organised over what the protesters described as an inaccurate account of the 1984 anti-Sikh riots in the book. The demonstration was led by DSGMC president Harmeet Singh Kalka and general secretary Jagdeep Singh Kahlo. Protesters gathered near the 'Wall of Truth' (Sach Di Kandh) at the gurdwara and raised slogans against Sonia Gandhi.

 

In a statement, Kalka said the claims made in the memoir were farcical and could not overshadow the suffering of thousands of victims of the 1984 anti-Sikh massacre. He asserted that the Sikh community would not accept any attempt to rewrite history or overlook the Congress leadership's alleged role in the violence.

 

The DSGMC president further said that the community remembered the events of 1984 through the suffering of innocent people and its continued demand for accountability. He added that the committee, along with victims and their families, remained committed to pursuing justice.

 

 

 

The memoir, released on Tuesday, describes the 1984 anti-Sikh riots as a "tragic and shameful" chapter in India's history. Sonia Gandhi writes that her husband and former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi "held no bigotry or rancour" but found himself leading the country at a time when governance had failed, allowing violence to spread.

 

The book also discusses the assassination of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and the subsequent outbreak of large-scale violence in Delhi and other parts of the country. According to the memoir, more than 2,000 people were killed in the national capital during the riots.

 

However, addressing reporters, Kalka and Kahlo rejected the account presented in the book, alleging that it did not adequately reflect the events of 1984 or the suffering experienced by the Sikh community. They pointed out that families of the victims continued to await justice even after four decades.