Is it K...... 2.0?

So, "K".

You might be thinking what exactly I'm talking about! When you read further, you might have already read or heard about this topic!
So, what exactly "K" here is? 

"K" here is the quite infamous "Khalistan". 

What is the Khalistan Movement?

In simple terms, The Khalistan movement is a separatist Sikh movement that aims to establish the Khālistān (also known as the "Land of the Khalsa") state in the Punjab area. With Lahore as its capital, the proposed state would be made up of territory that presently makes up Punjab, Pakistan and India, which was once the site of the Khalsa Empire.

The proposed flag of Khalistan

The Insurgency in Punjab (India)

The Insurgency in Punjab, from the mid-1980s to the mid-1990s, was an armed campaign by the Sikh militant Khalistan movement. The territorial aspirations of Khalistan have occasionally included Chandigarh, portions of the Indian Punjab, the entirety of North India, and some regions of the western states of India ever since the separatist movement gained traction in the 1980s. 

Along with political factionalism in the Punjab state, the Green Revolution brought about a number of social and economic changes that exacerbated tensions between agricultural Sikhs in Punjab and the union government of India. The militant aspect of the Khalistan campaign was then supported by Pakistani strategists. In the state polls for Punjab in 1972, Congress prevailed and Akali Dal lost. The Anandpur Sahib Resolution, proposed by Akali Dal in 1973, called for the province of Punjab to have more autonomy. The resolution was rejected by the Congress administration because it was seen as a secessionist document. The Dharam Yudh Morcha was established in 1982 by Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale after he joined the Akali Dal to carry out the Anandpur Sahib motion. 

With his strategy of passing the Anandpur Sahib Resolution, Bhindranwale had gained notoriety in the Sikh political sphere. As high-handed police methods normally used on common criminals were used on protesters during the Dharam Yudh Morcha, creating state repression affecting a very large segment of Punjab's population, retaliatory violence came from a section of the Sikh population, widening the scope of the conflict by the use of violence of the state on its own people, creating fresh motives for Sikh youth to turn to insurgency. During the summer, winter, and early 1983, the police killed orthodox Sikh youth in rural regions of Punjab without cause or justification, prompting retaliation. In the first 19 months of this year, more than 190 Sikhs had been slain.

Following this Operation Blue Star happened. After 4 months, PM Indira Gandhi was assassinated (mostly implied as retaliatory move against Op. Blue Star). More than 3,000 Sikhs were killed in the ensuing 1984 anti-Sikh riots as a result of public outrage over Gandhi's death and public incitement by several prominent lawmakers and actors.

Since the pogrom in November 1984, the Sikh community has felt under attack. A portion of Sikhs in Punjab became militants; some Sikh militant organizations sought to establish an independent state named Khalistan by carrying out violent acts against members of the Indian government, army, or forces. Based on the Anandpur Sahib Resolution, some called for an independent state within the boundaries of India. The Sikh diaspora's financial support for the insurgency sharply grew, with Sikhs in the US, UK, and Canada contributing thousands of dollars each week. Punjab's condition had gotten very volatile by 1985. Near Khuda in the Hoshiarpur district, a bus was ambushed by Sikh militants in December 1986, resulting in the shooting deaths of 24 Hindus and the injuries of 7 others.

This militancy was heavily funded by ISI (Pakistan). Sikh militants had received instruction, direction, and supplies from Pakistan. Reports have also indicated that the ISI has plans to target politicians with explosions in major cities like Amritsar, Ludhiana, Chandigarh, and Delhi. The Pakistani ISI was successful in creating an atmosphere where guerrilla warfare was practiced by arming Sikh extremists with modern, high-tech weapons.  A German-made pistol was used in a hijacking in 1984, and during the investigations, Germany's Federal Intelligence Service verified that the weapon was a part of a consignment of weapons for the Pakistani government. 

K.P.S. Gill, the man behind ending the Punjab Insugency

Between 1987 and 1991, Punjab was governed from Delhi under ineffective president's authority. 1992 saw the holding of elections, but there was a low participation. The formation of a new Congress(I) government granted K.P.S. Gill, the head of the Punjab Police in India, carte blanche. Police had initiated a number of intelligence-based operations, including Operation Black Thunder, to neutralize Sikh militants under his command. Multiple High-value terrorists were also killed by police, which helped to stop mass killings and quell the bloodshed. The Punjab uprising had ended by 1993, and the 1995 assassination of Chief Minister Beant Singh was its final significant event.

Over the course of the conflict, 1,714 security personnel, 7,946 militants, and 11,690 civilians were killed. For non-combatant deaths, some sites have provided higher estimates.

So Khalistan is popping up again?

The deadly fallout from Operation Blue Star helped spread the call for Khalistan among the many Sikhs scattered around the world. The movement benefited from the participation of some Sikh diaspora groups as they contributed political and financial support. It also made it possible for Pakistan to get engaged in igniting the movement. Sikhs in the UK, Canada, and the USA organized for cadres to go to Pakistan for money and military support. Even some Sikh organizations outside of India claimed to represent the Khalistani administration in exile.

Khalistan voices have largely been rejected in India, and till recently had some popularity on social media (mainly outside India). But, in 2020, the Indian Parliament passed the Farms Laws, which was highly criticized in Punjab and parts of Haryana and UP. This led to anti-Farm Law protests, which intensified and grew larger as farmers from Punjab surrounded Delhi. As days passed, radicalism and anti-govt and anti-India voices started coming up from the camps, with several experts (and event the Govt.) saying that Khalistan forces might have intruded in the protests. Later on Jan 26 (India's Republic Day) Red Fort was ransacked and a Nishan Sahib was unflurried on ramparts of Red Fort, while the whole city was held at ransom. This further added fuel to fire over Khalistan uprising in India, once again.  

2021 Red Fort Ransacked

Attacks increased over temples, Indian embassies, by pro-Khalistani forces outside India (especially in Canada, UK, Australia). A mock vote for Khalistan was staged on September 18, 2022, in the Canadian city of Brampton, near Toronto. Unofficial figures place the number of participants at over 100,000. But this was declared a farce and failed attempt by MEA, India. Sacrilege of Guru Granth Sahib in several parts of Punjab added fuel to fire.

But, now comes the present day, Amritpal Singh, a self-described radical Sikh "preacher," and the leader of the purported pressure group Waris Punjab De (Heirs of Punjab), attacked a police station in the Indian border state of Punjab on February 23 while brandishing guns and swords. The mob was attempting to persuade the officials to free a Singh associate who was being detained. Singh previously worked for his family's Dubai transportation company. Only in September 2022, following the passing of the Waris Punjab De's founder-chief, Deep Sidhu, in February 2022, did he return to Punjab to assume leadership. Singh claims that Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale is his inspiration. 

Anjala Clashes

Like Bhindranwale, Singh is shielding himself behind religion. He is using religion to deepen insecurity, incite anger, and mobilize support. Strong criticism has been leveled at the Punjab AAP administration for caving in to Singh's demands. When it comes to handling issues with law and order and separatist politics in the state, the Punjabi administration has shown utter incompetence. The secessionist banners are being raised in public by Singh and his highly armed goons. They defeated the cops at Anjala, and now they have triumphed. Escapism is not a strategy or a fix. 

However, the state is largely peaceful. Political experts believe that the bloodshed that Punjab experienced in the name of Khalistan 30-35 years ago has not yet come to an end. Khalistan has repeatedly been called for. But it started to burn after the Anjala tragedy.

"The past of Punjab after independence teaches us that the state experiences crises whenever its leadership is ineffective; the leader appears to be under the control of Delhi and unable to maintain Sikh religiosity within his political tent. What lies in the future cannot be predicted, but neither we can turn a blind eye to the present!"