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    Operation Black Thunder - Wikipedia

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    SharanGill
    Operation Black Thunder was the name given to two operations conducted by Indian security forces in 1986 and 1988 to remove Sikh militants from the Golden Temple in Amritsar, Punjab. The first operation in 1986 involved 300 commandos capturing 300 militants over eight hours. The second in 1988 began as a blockade and ended with the surrender of around 200 militants after 41 were killed, with minimal damage to the temple. It was considered more successful than the previous Operation Blue Star due to less force used and greater media access.

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    Operation Black Thunder - Wikipedia

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    SharanGill
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    Operation Black Thunder was the name given to two operations conducted by Indian security forces in 1986 and 1988 to remove Sikh militants from the Golden Temple in Amritsar, Punjab. The first operation in 1986 involved 300 commandos capturing 300 militants over eight hours. The second in 1988 began as a blockade and ended with the surrender of around 200 militants after 41 were killed, with minimal damage to the temple. It was considered more successful than the previous Operation Blue Star due to less force used and greater media access.

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    Operation Black Thunder

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    Operation Black Thunder was the name given to two operations conducted by Indian security forces in 1986 and 1988 to remove Sikh militants from the Golden Temple in Amritsar, Punjab. The first operation in 1986 involved 300 commandos capturing 300 militants over eight hours. The second in 1988 began as a blockade and ended with the surrender of around 200 militants after 41 were killed, with minimal damage to the temple. It was considered more successful than the previous Operation Blue Star due to less force used and greater media access.

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    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    336 views3 pages

    Operation Black Thunder - Wikipedia

    Uploaded by

    SharanGill
    Operation Black Thunder was the name given to two operations conducted by Indian security forces in 1986 and 1988 to remove Sikh militants from the Golden Temple in Amritsar, Punjab. The first operation in 1986 involved 300 commandos capturing 300 militants over eight hours. The second in 1988 began as a blockade and ended with the surrender of around 200 militants after 41 were killed, with minimal damage to the temple. It was considered more successful than the previous Operation Blue Star due to less force used and greater media access.

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    of 3

    Operation Black Thunder is the name given to two operations that took place in India in the

    late 1980s to flush out remaining Sikh activists from the Golden Temple using 'Black Cat'
    commandos of the National Security Guards[1] Like Operation Blue Star, these attacks were
    on Kharku sikhs who were based in the Golden Temple in Amritsar, Punjab.

    Operation Black Thunder I

    The first Operation Black Thunder took place on 30 April 1986. About 300 National Security
    Guards commandos stormed the Golden Temple, the holiest shrine of the Sikhs, along with
    700 Border Security Force troops and captured about 300 Sikh militants.[2] The operation,
    which lasted eight hours, was approved by then Chief minister of Punjab Surjit Singh Barnala
    of Shiromani Akali Dal.[2]

    Operation Black Thunder II

    Arms recovered from surrendered


    militants

    Operation Black Thunder II (sometimes just referred to as Operation Black Thunder)


    began on 9 May 1988[3] in Amritsar and ended with the surrender of the militants on 18 May.
    The operation was commanded by Kanwar Pal Singh Gill who was the DGP of Punjab
    Police. Snipers were used in this operation.[4] Compared to Operation Blue Star, little
    damage was inflicted on the Golden Temple.[5] In what was reported as a successful
    operation, around 200 millitants surrendered, 41 were killed. Gill stated that he did not want to
    repeat the mistakes made by the Indian army during Operation Blue Star.[6] This operation
    was described as a severe setback to the Anandpur Resolution implementation movement. In
    contrast to prior operations, minimum force was used under full public scrutiny.[7] It is
    remembered for the free access the news media was provided unlike during Operation Blue
    Star.[8] The day after the militants surrendered, nine reporters were allowed into the Temple
    complex.[9] Kirtan was resumed at the Golden Temple on 23 May 1988 after a two-week
    break during this operation.[10]
    While Operation Blue Star was widely considered poorly executed and shambolic because of
    the egregious loss of civilian lives and the damage done to both the Golden Temple and Sikh
    relations with the government (culminating in the assassination of Indira Gandhi by her
    bodyguards and anti-Sikh riots), Operation Black Thunder was far more successful with the
    blockade tactics paying dividends, and has been credited with breaking the back of the Sikh
    separatist movement. Soon after this operation, the Indian Government banned the use of
    religious shrines for political and military purposes and increased penalties for the
    possession and use of illegal weapons, as part of its strategy to fight extremism in the Punjab
    region.[11]

    In 2002 Sarabjit Singh who was the Deputy Commissioner of Amritsar at the time published a
    book "Operation Black Thunder: An Eyewitness Account of Terrorism in Punjab". The account
    was criticised by Kanwar Pal Singh Gill who claimed that the operation was initially called
    "Operation Gill" before being renamed "Operation Black Thunder".[12]

    See also

    Khalistan

    Operation Blue Star

    References

    1. National Security Guards

    2. India Deliverance , TIME, 1986-05-12

    3. Gandhi Under Pressure to Oust Sikhs From Temple The New York Times, 1988-05-11

    4. Troops in Punjab Enter Sikh Temple Complex The New York Times, 1988-05-14

    5. INDIAN COMMANDOS CLOSE IN ON SIKHS , The New York Times, 1988-05-18

    6. Sikhs Surrender to Troops at Temple , The New York Times, 1988-05-19

    7. Terrorism in context By Martha Crenshaw

    8. Black Thunders silver lining , The Hindustan Times, 2008-05-13

    9. At Golden Temple of Sikhs, the Debris of Battle The New York Times, 1988-05-20

    10. At Sikh Temple, an Uncertain Song Returns , The New York Times, 1988-05-23

    11. India Bans the Political and Military Use of Shrines The New York Times, 1988-05-29
    12. Now, Gill slams author of Operation Black Thunder , Rediff.com, 2002-07-29

    Last edited 2 months ago by Magioladitis

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