The Punjab Story

6 June 1984: The Indian Army storms the Golden Temple in Amritsar. Called Operation Bluestar, the historic andunprecedented event ended the growing spectre of terrorism perpetrated by the extremist Sikh leader Jarnail SinghBhindranwale and his followers once and for all. But it left in its wake unsolved political questions that continued tothreaten Punjab’s stability for years to come. How, in a brief span of three years, did India’s dynamic frontier statebecome a national problem? Who was to blame: the Central Government for allowing the crisis to drift despitewarnings, or the long-drawn-out Akali agitation, or the notorious gang of militants who transformed a holy shrine intoa sanctuary for terrorists? First published two months after Operation Bluestar, The Punjab Story pieces together thecomplex Punjab jigsaw through the eyes of some of India’s most eminent public figures and journalists. Writing withthe passion and conviction of those who were involved with the drama, they present a wide-ranging perspective onthe past, present and future of the Punjab tangle, and the truth of many of their conclusions having been borne outby time.