What kind of man is Sant Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale?

During the past year, as the Khalistan issue has focused national attention on the tortuous twists and turns of Sikh polities, one man has been consistently found in the eye of the storm - Sant Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale. Outspoken and fearless, the slightly-built 35-year-old Sikh preacher provokes intense reactions ranging from adulation to loathing and has been labelled everything from a communal secessionist to an establishment stooge.Declared a conspirator in the Lala Jagat Narain murder case last September, his arrest and the violence that followed it brought him into the full glare of the media spotlight. The police could not establish a case against him and by the time of his release in October, after a Centre-Akali agreement, his stock with the Sikh masses had soared.Since then he has been constantly on the road, addressing two, sometimes three meetings a day, mostly in gurudwaras, in Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh. His meetings are attended by throngs of the faithful - and the curious. Accompanied by busloads of his armed followers, the Sant does indeed appear a jarnail (general) spreading a message of militancy. What kind of man is Bhindranwale? What does he preach? And, more crucially, what is his impact on those who hear him? To find out, India Today Correspondent Gobind Thukral spent, last month trailing the Sant. His report:For some he is a maverick in quest of martyrdom, others see him as a fanatic fugitive. He is a thorn in the flesh of old-time Akali Dal politicians whose bastions of power are threatened by his iconoclastic zeal. Urban Hindus regard him as a rabble-rousing villain, a rough and - unscrupulous bully.The Sikh masses listen to him in awe and respect - he is their champion. His public speeches veer between lucid arguments and fiery challenges. In private he is calm, self- effacing and - when questions become too direct or politically tricky - quiet. There can be no doubt that today he has become a major factor in the state's ever-shifting power equation, and, more significantly, one whose influence is likely to grow..preferred-source-banner{ margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom:10px;}Dressed in a traditional knee-length white chola (shirt) and a nine-yard Akali blue pugree (turban), he looks like a Nihang although in contrast to his rifle-toting bodyguards, the only weapon he carries is a long iron arrow. Last month, he spoke in villages in Ludhiana, Ropar and Patiala districts, Moga, Chandigarh and Kuruk-shetra. He rarely quotes Sikh scripture but speaks bluntly in the rustic Punjabi of his native Malwa (the region south of the Sutlej). His peasant audiences, who have not heard anyone challenge authority so openly. lap up every word and respond to his thundering phrases with the Sikh war-cry, "bole so nihal-sat sri akal" (whoever says this will be fulfilled-Truth alone is immortal).Bhindranwale: Voice of protestNot Guilty:Anyone planning to write a biography of the Sant would do well to consult the Central Intelligence Department (CID) which has assiduously taped his every public utterance. Although the officers have listened keenly for possibly seditious remarks, Bhindranwale has so far disappointed them. Concludes Punjab Director-General of Police Birbal Nath, "We examined these tapes in detail and have come to the conclusion that his threats and challenges do not invite any penal action."Chief Minister Darbara Singh professes unconcern: "I am not daunted by his threats nor are my police. So why should we take notice of all that the Sant is saying?" But he says in the next breath. "The moment we find that the law has been violated we shall act," adding bravely, "We know how to act, we are no cowards." However, it is also a fact that cases registered under the arms act against members of the Sant's jatha (following) have not been taken up by the police.Bhindranwale's views are best conveyed in his own words:On discrimination against the Sikhs: "There are separate laws for the Sikhs and the Hindus. If a Lala (Jagat Narain) is killed there are warrants within six days and I am arrested. If 18 young Sikhs are killed, their mothers and sisters insulted, their houses burnt and crops destroyed and their religious books burnt, no case is registered. The Government does not move for months." "If the Pandey brothers in Uttar Pradesh hijack a plane for a woman (Mrs Gandhi) they are rewarded with political positions. If the Sikhs hijack a plane to Lahore and that too for a cause, they are dubbed traitors. Why two laws for the same crime?"On Resistance: "A Sikh carries his head on his palm, he is the embodiment of sacrifice. We have faced the Government during the Emergency by demonstrating 37 times and we will tear the Government to pieces if it comes near us. I accept the challenge of the Darbara Singh Government as the Sikhs accepted the challenge of the tyrannical regime of the Mughals. during the British Raj and after the so-called Independence. We know how to protect our religion."On the Government: "The Government is afraid of religious people like me because men who occupy the seat of power have always been scared of the god-fearing religious man. Babar was afraid of Guru Nanak, Jehangir was afraid of Guru Hargobind and Aurangzeb of Guru Gobind Singh. The power-drunk rulers should know that nemesis will sooner or later overtake them."On Extremism: "We are no extremists or communalists. Give us one instance when we insulted or hit anyone. But the Government terms us extremists. We are extremists if we protest when our Gurus are painted as lovers of wine and women by the Lala's newspapers. I preach that all Sikhs must observe their tenets and be the Guru's warriors. Let all Hindus wear their sacred thread and put tilak on their foreheads, we shall honour them. I stand for Hindu-Sikh unity. Let the Hindus at least once declare that they stand for Sikh-Hindu unity. Let the prime minister, whose forefathers our Guru Teg Bahadur saved by sacrificing his life, declare that she is for unity."Published By: AtMigration Published On: Oct 15, 2013--- ENDS ---

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What kind of man is Sant Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale?

During the past year, as the Khalistan issue has focused national attention on the tortuous twists and turns of Sikh polities, one man has been consistently found in the eye of the storm - Sant Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale.

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