Amritsar : Dal Khalsa leads march, declared Bandh for today

On the eve of the Operation Blue Star anniversary, Dal Khalsa, a radical Sikh organisation, staged a "remembrance parade" here on Monday, bearing Khalistani flags and images of the damaged Akal Takht and Sikh combatants.

The march began at Burj Akali Phoola Singh and ended at Darbar Sahib with a 'ardas' (Sikh prayer) being offered.

The Dal Khalsa president, Harpal Singh Cheema, stated, "We put out a'remembrance procession' in Amritsar to pay homage to Sikh heroes who fought until their last breath for our cause and to tell the Centre that we have neither forgotten nor will forgive the perpetrators of Operation Blue Star.

In June 1984, the Indian Army launched Operation Blue Star to flush out other terrorists hiding underground in the Golden Temple and capture pro-Khalistan ideologue Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale. To protest "Operation Blue Star," the hardline Sikh group also called for a "Amritsar shutdown" on June 6 (Tuesday). Dal Khalsa declared June 6 to be Khalistan Day as well.

As stated by Kanwar Pal Singh, Dal Khalsa's secretary for political affairs, "the shutdown call is for business establishments, traders, banks, petrol stations and educational institutions; there would be no stoppage of transport vehicles." Speaking to the crowd were Paramjit Singh Mand, a spokesperson for the Dal Khalsa, Emaan Singh Mann, the leader of the SAD (Amritsar), and Karnail Singh Panjoli, a member of the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC).

"We have sent out two companies of the Rapid Action Force (RAF) and two companies of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF). Approximately 5,000 people have been stationed in the city, according to an Amritsar police official.