When A Tree Shook Delhi
Jagmohan Singh

His beard is rolled up in a typically royal Phoolka misl style.  His tall stature and demeanour has all the qualities of a learned person.  His patience to listen goes beyond that of a seasoned lawyer.  The glint in his eye sparks of deep religiosity. His passion for public work has very few parallels.  His determination and consistency is an example to emulate.  His desire to “work behind the scenes” is a noble trait picked up from his ancestors.  Hailing from a village in Bhadaur, Sangrur where his family lives, he has all the earthen grounding and the urban sophistication to be part of the who’s who of Delhi. 

He is Harvinder Singh Phoolka.  He is the only lawyer, perhaps the only activist who has single-handedly and painstakingly continued to work for two decades, seeking justice for the victims of the anti-Sikh pogrom of November 1984.  In contemporary times, I have not come across any activist who has been that steadfast and consistent. 

When World Sikh News decided to put together a special issue for the November 84 pogrom by India, we could think of none other than Harvinder Singh Phoolka for our interview.  I spent hours discussing his life and work.

I greatly admire Simon Wiesenthall.  As soon as I started to take interest in Panjab politics, I dreamt of becoming one.  Even before I had heard about Wiesenthall, I read the work of a Sikh-Kashmiri author, when I was in my teens, one Sarna ji, whose full name I cannot recall, who had painstakingly gathered the details of all the Sikh-Kashmiris killed during the partition of the sub-continent in 1947. 

My desire to become a Wiesenthall made me a human rights activist. It also made me a political activist and more so a catalyst for change.  I earned great satisfaction at quickening a task in Panthic interest and decreasing the speed of something which was detrimental to the interests of the Sikh nation. 

To me, Harvinder Singh Phoolka is the Sikh avtar of Simon Wiesenthall.  My nation desperately needed one.  He should be the first one.  We need many more.  We did have the likes of Jaswant Singh Khalra whose lives were cut short by an inhumane state.

Readers of the World Sikh News in the Diaspora may read between the lines and look for the message and call of Harvinder Singh Phoolka.  Should you miss it, the Sikh nation is in for more dangerous times ahead.

JS: Where do we go from where we are?

Phoolka:  The first generation of the families of victims has settled down.  Some have been rehabilitated well, some not.  But by and large they have.  Now we have the duty to take care of their second generation.  The first generations lived through the times without education and in many cases were unable to provide basic education to their wards, as they were still living the trauma.  There was no male member in the house and most of them were left to fend for themselves.  Children were brought up in urban ghettos, living on measly doles from the government and some Sikh organisations.

JS: What should be done?

Phoolka: Now is the time to do Gyan Sewa.  We have done enough of Kar Sewa.  We have brought down our historic structures unscrupulously and today is the time to start nation building.  The youth should be given the Parshad of Gyan Sewa.  Let every Gurdwara, every Sikh; wherever he is take upon itself the task of disseminating knowledge and education. We have already taken the first steps in this direction and would appeal to all concerned to join us and also to take up initiatives on their own.

JS: Whom would you hold responsible?

Phoolka: The religio-political leadership of the Sikhs is in wrong hands.  Politics has overtaken religion.  It is a directionless, rudderless ship which did not respond to the call of the hour.  Since the last 23 years, there has been no consistent effort by any political party to take care of the Sikh youth, particularly of the affected families.  This leadership, across the board paid lip service failed to embark upon a well-thought of long term programme for education and human resource development.  There was no attempt to remove the spirit of ghettoisation from the families and their children. 

JS: What are the dynamics of Gyan Sewa?

Phoolka: Education, more education and higher education.  Get the children of as many families as possible into the best of schools and provide them with the best of facilitiesLet us make available books and dictionaries. Let us build libraries. A massive scholarship programme needs to be planned and executed.  Double quick.

JS: How many cases of prosecution of perpetrators of the anti-Sikh pogrom are pending?

Phoolka: Not more than five or six.  Efforts should be made persuade witnesses to depose.  We should also look for other witnesses still ready to depose.  Herein lies the task of the international Sikh Diaspora.

JS: What can the Diaspora do?

Phoolka: The Diaspora has done a lot, but more needs to be done.  There is a whole body of international law that nails down the likes of Bhagats, Tytlers and Modis.  There is a compendium of US law which needs to be unearthed.  Now is the time for this phase of activity to begin.  The young Diaspora Sikh who has heard or read about 1984 should be excited to look into all possibilities of prosecution of the political leadership which engineered the pogrom. We will continue our work here, but the net needs to be strengthened all around. No one should be allowed to go scot free.  I must say that the focus should be on result-oriented efforts.  Not much talk, only work should be the motto. 

JS: What kind of response do you sense amongst the Sikhs today?

Phoolka: Some people still talk about it in Panjab. People in Delhi do not want to talk about it.  The Diaspora keeps the issue alive.  I reiterate that the Diaspora has nothing to fear.  They should come forward and work.  Nothing is going to happen.  Do not fear about the consequences.  Consider this.  All those who stood witness and deposed are better off than those who chickened out for whatever reason.  Jagmohan, please tell the international Sikh community that they have nothing to fear.

JS: Would you have a message or call to Sikh youth?

Phoolka: Keep the issue alive.  Ten years ago, no one would have imagined that they would have got seven lakh rupees as compensation!  In 1994, people told me, “why don’t you give up, nothing is going to come out it.” When the Nanavati Commission was set up, people called it the BJP’s game, but they were in for a shock when they got more compensation.

JS: Apart from the compensation part, what more was achieved?

Phoolka: A Union Minister of the government of India had to resign, the parliament had to pass a resolution of condemnation in August 2005 and the Prime Minister of the country had to bow his head in shame. 

JS: Are you satisfied with the role of civil society in India?

Phoolka: The way civil society in Indian responded to the government’s “No Action Taken Report” on the Nanavati Commission was remarkable.  I am more than satisfied. Every channel, every single newspaper of the country criticised the government’s acts of omission and commission.  The underlying message was loud and clear that people are by and large with us. 

JS: Would you have any advice for the Indian state?

Phoolka: 84 went unpunished and set up a precedent.  It is my view that had the killers of 1984 and their political masters been awarded exemplary punishment in good time, Gujarat and Bombay would not have happened. 

JS: Was November 1984 different from the other pogroms?

Phoolka: It is inhuman to make such comparison.  Though I must add that in 1984 the victims were only Sikhs, whereas in Gujarat 870 Muslims and 230 Hindus were killed.  To call the 1984 tragedy a riot is a big lie. It was carnage, a well thought of pogrom. The Delhi police have admitted on record that those Sikhs who defended themselves were unarmed.

JS: Tell me more about what you think about the response of the Sikh leadership?

Phoolka: I am satisfied with the response of civil society, but the Sikh leadership has disappointed me no end.  

JS: In all these years, what would you recall as your worst moment?

Phoolka: I was hurt and angry when the Sikh leadership, instead of facilitating our work, hurled hindrances.  The Sikh leadership shamelessly used money power to side with the likes of Sajjan Kumar, Jagdish Tytler and HKL Bhagat.  This leadership attempted to reduce the significance of our work to their petty infighting and political subterfuge. When this political leadership attempted to malign my reputation on flimsy grounds of financial gain, I felt sad. This pain still lingers.

JS: What is your best moment?

Phoolka: “Na haar di gammi, na jitt di khushi”...defeat does not make me sad, victory does not make me happy. Till the Tytler resignation happened, I was on TV channels for three days.  The moment he put in his papers, I declined all interviews. My job had been done.  I am a seeker of justice, not revenge.

JS: What keeps you going?

Phoolka: Upparwala –the God Almighty. He has been benevolent and kind to me beyond my askance. 

JS: What is your advice to the managers of the Indian state?

Phoolka: I have submitted a detailed presentation to the Parliamentary Committee on the Communal Violence Bill to be presented to Parliament.  I have suggested major changes in the rule book, primarily detaching police officers from political patronage and also holding the police and bureaucracy personally responsible for any killings in their jurisdiction when the number of deaths exceeds ten.  All preventive measures should be automatic and clearly laid out with no discretion to the police or the political leadership.

JS: I believe you are writing something on November 1984. What is it called?

Phoolka: When a Tree Shook Delhi.  This book has been co-authored with Manoj Mitta, my twenty year old friend, who is the Senior Editor of Times of India.

JS: What is your message for concerned citizens?

Phoolka: No issue is big or small.  If you think that you should do something, do it. Do not wait for any one. Always think about your role. You need to remember whether you are working for him or Him.  You need to work for your children, for your people and for your Lord. No one else.

20 September, 2007