Patwant Singh. April 17, 2001
Deposing before the Nanavati commission probing the 1984 anti-Sikh
riots, writer Patwant Singh Tuesday accused the then home minister P V
Narasimha Rao of being ''totally unresponsive'' to the unfolding crisis
in the wake of the assassination of then prime minister Indira Gandhi.
Singh, who had gone to see Rao at his residence along with former prime
minister I K Gujral and Lt Gen J S Arora a day after the October 31
assassination, also said in an affidavit that Rao's approach was so
casual that it clearly gave an indication that he was ''totally
unconcerned''.
''We reached the home minister's house at about 15 hours IST. We were
suprised to see that there was no activity there. Rao was looking
impassive and seemingly without care. The atmosphere at the house did
not show that there was any crisis in the country,'' Singh said.
Singh said that during the more than an hour-long meeting, Rao neither
received any telephone call nor did he make any. No officer had come to
see him during this period.
Blaming Mr Rao for not making proper arrangements for the immediate
deployment of the army to control the situation, he said: ''The army was
not made effective till November 3, 1984. The murderous mobs were given
a free hand for three days.''
''This casual approach of the home minister appears to be not only gross
negligence but connivance with the perpetrators of this heinous crime,''
Singh said in his affidavit.
In his affidavit, Patwant Singh said that on the morning of November 1,
he had also called on the then President Giani Zail Singh, seeking his
intervention to control the situation, but the President said he had no
powers to intervene.
Stunned by this "astounding remark", Patwant Singh said: "Mr President,
you mean to tell us that if the nation is going up in flames and people
are being butchered in the streets, you have no power to stop the
anarchy and bloodshed." The President kept silent, he added.
During this meeting, the eminent writer was accompanied by Air Chief
Marshal (retd) Arjan Singh, Lt Gen J S Arora and Brig Sukhjit Singh and
former diplomat Gurbachan Singh.
Patwant Singh said when they insisted that the President should speak
forcefully to the then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi to put an end to the
barbaric acts, he replied: "I will do so in three or four days' time. I
want to give him some time."
Singh then remarked: "Blood is being spilt on the streets and you want
three four days to talk to the prime minister." The President, he said,
then relented and said he would have a word with the PM that afternoon.
"But I believe he did not," he added.
Patwant Singh said when he again met Narasimha Rao on November 10, 1984
for help to bring the guilty to the book, his approach was again very
lukewarm. The home minister said the law would take its own course.
"But the law was not permitted to take its own course and was
deliberately scuttled at every stage at the instance of people in
power," Patwant Singh said.
Deposing before the commission for the first time, Patwant Singh also
highlighted the contrast of approach of the administration in handling
the situation after the 1948 assassination of Mahatma Gandhi with that
of Indira Gandhi.
Before broadcasting news regarding the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi
on All India Radio, he said, steps were taken to maintain law and order
to avoid bloodshed in the streets, police and army were alerted in
advance.
"Unfortunately, no such precautions were taken before broadcasting the
news of assassination of Indira Gandhi. On the contrary, I noticed that
after almost every 15 minutes slogans like khoon ka badla khoon were
shown repeatedely uttered by the crowd," he said.
"Despite our efforts and the pains we took to drive home the enormity of
the tragedy which was unfolding before our eyes to those whose
constitutional and moral responsibility was to protect the lives of the
nation's citizens, these men did nothing and thereby connived in the
killing of thousands of innocent Sikhs," Patwant Singh said in his
affidavit.
"Many of their partymen, ministerial colleagues and fellow
parliamentarians actually instigated the mobs to kill Sikh men, women
and children," he added.
Patwant Singh will be cross-examined on April 20. |