Operation Blue Star
Analysis of Operation Blue Star and its effects on the Gandhi dynasty The period of time including and following Operation Blue star is considered a dark time in India and black spot in Indian history. It is a time Indian would rather forget, yet still to this day debate about. Was Indihar Gandhi correct in instating operation Blue Star, inflicting damage to the Golden temple, and being responsible for the killing of anywhere from 492 (official reports) to 1500 (estimates run as high as) civilians, which lead to an additional 5,000 Sikh deaths following, due to anti-Sikh riots? Was Indihar Gandhi’s actions justified, and could her problems with the Sikhs have been solved in any other way? These are all question India still debates to this day. We will look at who exactly Indihar Gandhi is, what is operation blue star, why she invoked Operation Blue Star, how did her actions eventually lead to her assassination, India’s Sikh population afterwards, and how Indihar’s actions affected the Gandhi dynasty? On June 3, 1984 Indihar Gandhi gave the executive decision to invoke Operation Blue Star, a military attack on the golden temple in Amritsar, Punjab. The Golden Tempe is considered one of the most sacred and religious places in the world, in what Indihar Gandhi taught was a necessity following a chain of events. Sikhs, involved in the Khalistan movement wanted Punjab to be an independent state, and felt they were being oppressed. The Khalistan movement led under Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale used tactics to express their views and desires in a very unconventional way, depending on your religion. Bhindranwale felt the only way to achieve liberation, was through violence, which he demonstrated through violent protests, and acts of terrorism. Bhindranwale’s actions were influenced by those of the government’s actions towards Muslims, and their creation of their country Pakistan and Bangladesh, and those of inefficiency of the actions of Mahatma Gandhi, and his