So, like, history is totally back to haunt and taunt the Congress, India’s grand old party. During this interactive session at the Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs at Brown University in the US, Rahul Gandhi, Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, was asked about the 1984 riots and the Congress’ relationship with the Sikh community. And you know what he said? He was like, “Yeah, a lot of the ‘mistakes’ happened when I wasn’t even there.” But then he was all, “I’m more than happy to take responsibility for all the wrong stuff the Congress ever did.” Like, props for owning up, dude.
The video of this chit-chat was dropped on the YouTube channel of the Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs, and it went viral real quick. In the clip, Rahul Gandhi was all, “Yeah, the 80s were messed up, but I’ve been to the Golden Temple a bunch of times. I totally have a great relationship with the Sikh community in India.” Pretty cool of him to acknowledge the past, right?
Then, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) didn’t waste any time and went after Rahul Gandhi. The head of the BJP’s IT Department, Amit Malviya, shared the video online and was like, “Look at this, Rahul Gandhi getting called out for not making amends with the Sikhs. He needs to step up his game, especially after all that fearmongering in the US.” Ouch, that’s gotta sting a bit.
And then, this guy Pratap Sarnaik from Maharashtra was all, “If Rahul Gandhi is still asking for forgiveness for stuff that went down in the 80s, he’s kinda showing his immaturity.” Shots fired, I guess?
But wait, there’s more! The allies of the Congress, like the Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut, had some positive vibes for Rahul Gandhi. Raut was all like, “Rahul Gandhi is a stand-up guy, admitting his mistakes and all. It’s a big deal in politics to own up to your mess-ups. Take notes, Modi and Shah.” Looks like Rahul is getting some love and support from unexpected places.
Let’s talk about this ‘Operation Blue Star’ in 1984. So, the Indian Army was on a mission to capture this dude Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, who was chilling in the Golden Temple in Amritsar, Punjab. Bhindranwale was all about this separate Sikh state of Khalistan, which didn’t sit well with the government. So, they gave the green light for this operation, and things got real messy real quick.
The operation went down from June 1 to June 10, 1984, and it was a total disaster. Like, there was so much bloodshed and violence that spread like wildfire in the northern parts of the country. And to top it off, the Prime Minister at the time, Indira Gandhi, got assassinated. Talk about a rough time for everyone involved.
So yeah, history’s a tricky thing, especially when it comes back to bite you in the butt. But hey, at least Rahul Gandhi is owning up to the past and trying to make things right. Maybe it’s just me, but I feel like that’s a step in the right direction. Let’s see where this all goes, shall we?
