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New Delhi:
Brig (Retd) Israr Rahim Khan, who commanded the first battalion
that entered the Golden Temple in Amritsar during Operation
Bluestar says he has no intention of approaching the government,
and would not beg for security.
Brig Khan was speaking in the wake of the attack on his former
senior colleague in London. He said it was up to security agencies
to maintain surveillance.
Brig Khan, who commanded the 10 Guards regiment during Operation
Bluestar (June 3-6, 1984), expressed concern over the attack on Lt
Gen (Retd) K.S. Brar in London. His former colleague was "saved by
a whisker", Brig Khan said.
Gen Brar, who led the Indian Army operation into the Golden Temple
28 years ago suffered injuries in the face and neck when he was
attacked by knife-wielding men near a hotel in central London
Sunday night.
London's Metropolitan Police have so far not confirmed the
identity of the four attackers with "long black beards".
Asked if he would seek heightened security in the wake of the
attack on Gen Brar, Brig Khan said: "No, I don't want to. I am not
a beggar. I have enough courage to face such a threat."
"It is their (government's) prerogative to provide security to a
soldier," Khan told IANS.
Brig Khan asserted that being a soldier, he would fight if faced
with an attack. "I will not die a coward's death, that is for
sure," he said.
He said that although separatist elements had lain dormant for
long in India, they were active outside India, including in
Europe. He added that disgruntled Sikh elements still nurse
resentment against Operation Bluestar.
Operation Bluestar was conducted by the army to flush out heavily
armed militants from the Golden Temple complex in Amritsar. The
complex, except for the sanctum sanctorum, suffered heavy damage.
Brig Khan observed that there was need for improved intelligence,
following the attack on Gen Brar.
He opposed the construction of a memorial to militants who were
killed during Operation Bluestar and said: "Any government which
approves this should be tried for treason." He said that the
government of Punjab should not aggravate the situation.
Brig Khan was at the front during the wars that India fought in
1965 and 1971. He served in Nagaland at the height of insurgency
there, and was a Lt Col when he commanded the battalion that was
the first to enter the Golden Temple.
From June 5, 1984, Brig Khan stayed in the Golden Temple for more
than a fortnight, until then prime minister Indira Gandhi visited.
"I wanted to come out to look after men of my battalion, but was
told that I should remain there," Brig Khan said.
Khan, who now lives in the vicinity of the capital, was given
official accommodation in Delhi cantonment when he retired from
the army in 1996, as he was placed under Z-category security. In
2003, the NDA government made a revision of the threat perception
and withdrew the security cover offered to the retired brigadier.
He was also asked to vacate the government accommodation.
Brig Khan said he had tried to meet then home minister L.K. Advani
after his ministry downgraded the threat perception. At that time,
Brig Khan said that Advani's private secretary Deepak Chopra had
told him that since the minister was busy, the matter would be
handled by a joint secretary of the ministry.
Brig Khan had also moved the court, but the government insisted
that the threat perception had been revised and downgraded.
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