Inderbir Kaur

Did violence escalate as much in places outside Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi’s sphere of influence? Calcutta-based Inderbir Kaur witnessed how effective local governance immediately curbed violence in her hometown.

“Fortunately, in Calcutta, I must give credit to Jyoti Basu, who was the Chief Minister of that time. He immediately flew back and it was his order that nothing is going to happen. And they made sure, that with minimum casualty, everything was controlled. So I feel, wherever these things happened… it happened because the police and the people in government, were all hand in glove. Otherwise, if they wanted… If they can control Calcutta, they can control anywhere!”

In this spirited interview Kaur highlights the reverberations of the November 1984 violence, which were felt long after the three days of mayhem.

“But after 1984… Sikhs were targeted everywhere. They were given very shabby treatment. At the airport, you would have to take of your turban, and wherever you go they would call you names that were not very comfortable to hear, and wherever two, three, four people would be sitting together, they would say ‘You are making a Khalistan here!’ Things like that… it was very very uncomfortable for quite a few years….”