1.
I am a student of JNU. I am doing my Ph. D. in History
specialization is Communalism in modern India.
2.
On the night of 31st October 1984 at about 2100 hrs. I
heard a roar from Munirka side of the Campus. From my room on the second
floor, I saw the light of the frames in that direction. I cycled down to
the place about 1 Km. from my house. In Munirka DDA flats I saw that some
taxis at the stand were burning and a catering van standing nearby was
also burning. 5 or 6 people were standing near these burning vehicles.
3.
A little towards the West, on Palam Marg I also saw a group of boys
(mostly in their teens) holding lathis and iron rods. These boys were
stopping vehicles plying on the Palam Marg. They stopped only Sikh driven
vehicles and aloowed the others to go.
4.
I returned to the Campus to be in time for the TV News. After the
news I saw from room flames in the old campus of JNU. A lone General
Store, situated behind the school of language was burnt. This was owned by
a Sikh.
5.
On November 1, 1984, Gyatri Sabharwal daughter of Prof. Satish
Sabharwal resident of 140, New Campus JNU, Vasant Sabharwal S/o Prof.
Satish Sabharwal and myself went into the city on our cycle.
6.
When we reached the Munirka Market we saw a small group of people
standing in the lane behind Punjab Wools Store. About three people were on
the roof of Punjab Wools Store andn adjoining shops. One of them was
having a thick iron rod and a Sabbal. This was a group of men in their
early twenties. They told us that they were trying to break into the
Sardars’ shops. We moved onward on Palam Marg and saw a policeman
standing in front of Punjab Wools Store who are pretending to be unaware
of what was going on the roof above. Then we moved towards Sector –1,
R.K. Puram, South Extn. and Teen Murti and returned to Munirka at about
9:30 am. This time we came towards Munirka from Malai Madir side.
7.
When we reached Palam Marg opposite the Petrol Station adjacent to
Vasant Vihar Depot of the DTC at about 9:30 am to very large number of
people were standing near the gate of the Depot. Many were in DTC uniform.
We saw one man in uniform running towards the petrol station. The crowd
followed him very slowly. There was great jubilation and gaity in the
expression and behaviour.
8.
At about 9:45 am I was at the Super Bazar in Munirka on Palam Road.
Many people were roaming about on the road. Two Sikhs came riding on the
Rajdoot Motor Cycle, it was being driven at a fairly fast speed. The crowd
at the Depot stopped the motorcycle, but from where I was standing if did
not see what happened.
9.
On Palam Marg at this time there were many policemen. I have seen
them in groups on the road between Malai Mandir and Munirka DDA flats. A
group of them was lounging in front of the burning Punjab Wools Store. One
of them was a Sub-Inspector police. They were making no attempt to control
the crowd. The DTC Depot was about 100 yds. from this group of policemen.
But they were not stopping the mob from arson and muder. The mob was
stopping and burning the Sikhs’ vehicles on Palam Road in Munirka.
10.
On the 1st November 1984, night I was at the Munirka
turn style with Gayatri Sabharwal, Vasan Sabharwal and Murli Atluri of
History Centre. Around 2130 hrs. Mr. Bharat Singh Bist, Ex-student
Geography a Congress (I) man came up the road from old campus. He was with
4 or 5 other persons. He asked us to hide behind rocks and not expose
ourselves near the road as he had seen Sikh Bands moving on motorcycles and running down people indiscriminately. I asked them to
stop spreading false rumours as we had ourselves gone round and found that
Sikhs were only on the receiving end. He went over to the JNU main gate
where Dr. Dipankar Gupta was maintaining a picket. Mr. Gupta has mentioned
this encounter with Bist in his appendix to the booklet “who are the
guilty.”
11.
On returning to the campus at about 1000 hrs. We saw one person
Biswajit Ghosh Ph.D. student Socialogy Centre. As soon as we entered the
campus a DTC bus route 666 filled with shouting jubilating mob came near
the campus gate. Biswajit Ghosh shut the campus gate and did not allow the
bus to enter. The bus left soon another DTC bus came filled with similar
shouting mob stopped at the gate but as the gate was closed it could not
enter. They were shouting “Kill all Sikhs.”
12.
In the afternoon around 1430 hrs. Vasant and myself again went on
our cycle into the city. This time we went via Sector 4, R.K. Puram to
Sangam Cinema and reached Africa Avenue.
13.
In Sector 4 of R.K. Puram a crowd of about 200 were standing on the
periphery of the quandrangle. It was mostly a crowd of young boys throwing
stones at a particular house in which Sikh family had hidden itself.
Residents of surrounding flats, including the immediate neighbours, were
sanding on their balcony or compound as the case may be and watching the
whole affair. Vasant and myself stood on the road and watched it for 5 to
7 minutes.
14.
From Sector 4, R.K. Puram, we passed in front of R.K. Puram P.S. We
saw about 30 policemen lounging around and two 3 ton trucks of the police
standing alongwith two jeeps. At Africa Avenue we saw a group of men
carrying with them a variety of household goods from a burning house next
to DLTA. The tings included bedsheets, chairs, electronic equipments,
table lamps etc. They were taking these things to Mohammadpur Village on
the other side of the road. One man was taking a large bed on a cycle.
Apart from these individuals, there was a much more tight group set of men
who were not looting but simply entering Sikh houses and buring them up
and their scooter / cars. This lot had some cans with them, which contain
some kind of a ignitable liquid to help start a fire. Once again this
group was in quite festive mood. And there were many onlookers from the
colony with the group or watching them from their houses.
15.
The core group was composed of about 15 people. On going ahead of
this core group we saw a man on Bullet motorcycle. He used to stop in
front of the house which was to be burnt, indicate the house to the group
and then move on slowly ahead. He was being addressed as Bhaiya. He looked
like some kind of local tough, because kiosk owners along the way seem to
be acquinted with him.
16.
About five six house away from the taxi stand towards Kamal Cinema I saw an army officer in
uniform inside a house. I went in, he was a Colonel in the medical crops.
I pointed out the Bhaiya to him and asked him if anything could be done to
stop these people. He said he was unable to raise the police on the phone
and took his car to go to the Police Station. In about 15 minutes or less
he returned saying that the police refused to do anything.
17.
After this I returned to campus with Vasant.
