Politics, more than justice, seems to be the trigger behind the Congress response to get Jagdish Tytler and Sajjan Kumar to withdraw from the Lok Sabha fray.

For, Tytler and Kumar were the last two recognisable public figures perceived to have led the mobs to attack Sikhs following the assassination of Indira Gandhi in 1984. Others like H K L Bhagat and Lalit Maken are long gone, hardline Sikh groups got a drubbing during successive state elections and so the current controversy threatened to open wounds almost closed.

While the low percentage of voting and boycott by Akalis robbed the credibility of the 1992 elections which led to the formation of the Congress government led by Beant Singh, 10 years later, the Congress romped home under the leadership of Capt Amarinder Singh. Not a single leader belonging to radical parties could win or even save their security deposit.

Again in 2007, when the Akalis — in alliance with the BJP — won the Assembly elections, radical leaders were conspicuous by their absence in the Assembly. The Akali Dal faction led by Simranjeet Singh Mann was trounced with none of its candidates, including Mann, able to save even their security deposits. Almost all radical leaders had contested under Mann’s Akali Dal. Neither the Damdami Taksal nor any other radical group put up candidates.

This dramatic change in mindset was visible when Congress president Sonia Gandhi visited the Golden Temple with no signs of any hostility during her visit. Rahul Gandhi, too, visited Amritsar twice and his statement that the 1984 riots were “unfortunate and condemnable,” was appreciated.

... contd.