Operation Woodrose

Part of Punjab Insurgency

Shown in red is the present state of Punjab under Indian rule.

Date

1984–1992
(8 years)

Location

Punjab, India

Result

Tactical Indian victory, status quo ante bellum:

Continued, diminished unrest in Punjab state and revival of Akali Dal political presence
President's Rule in Punjab ended in 1985, imposed again in 1987 and continued until 1992.
Terrorist actions taken by militants, including the bombing of Air India Flight 182 in 1985, and the assassination of Chief Minister Beant Singh in 1995.
Crackdown on and disintegration of Babbar Khalsa and various other militant groups

Belligerents

India

Khalistani militants
Supported by:

Pakistan

Casualties and losses

Unknown

Unknown; no official count done

over 12,000 civilian deaths in total insurgency

Tactical Indian victory, status quo ante bellum:

Operation Woodrose was a military operation carried out by the Indira Gandhi-led Indian government in the months after Operation Blue Star to "prevent the outbreak of widespread public protest" in the state of Punjab. The government arrested all prominent members of the largest Sikh political party, the Akali Dal, and banned the All India Sikh Students Federation, a large students' union. In addition, the Indian Army conducted operations in the countryside during which thousands of Sikhs, overwhelmingly young men, were detained for interrogation and subsequently tortured. Despite its purported success in controlling the armed insurgency in the Punjab region, the operation was criticized by human-rights groups for the suspension of civil liberties and habeas corpus, resulting in the disappearances of thousands of Sikh men. After the operation, the central government was criticized for using "draconian legislation" to repress a minority community.

Main article: Punjab Insurgency The operation consisted of the rounding up of thousands of Sikh youth, including several presumably innocent civilians. According to estimates published by Inderjit Singh Jaijee, approximately 1 million individuals were reported as missing or killed as a result of Army operations during this period. According to Dr.Sangat Singh, Joint Intelligence Committee, about 100,000 youth had been taken into custody within first four to six weeks of the operation and he adds that many of them were not heard of again. He further adds about 20,000 youth crossing over to Pakistan.

To allow for the legality of the operation, the states of Punjab and Chandigarh had been declared by the Indian government as 'disturbed areas' by the enactment of the Punjab Chandigarh Disturbed Area Act 1983, while the Army was given unprecedented powers to detain and arrest civilians by the enactment of the Armed Forces (Punjab and Chandigarh) Act 1983. The act empowered any commissioned, warrant or non-commissioned officer of the Army if "of opinion that it is necessary so to do for the maintenance of public order, after giving such due warning as he may consider necessary, fire upon or otherwise use forces, even to the causing of death". The act also allowed such an officer to "arrest, without warrant, any person who has committed a cognizable offence or against whom a reasonable suspicion exists that he has committed or is about to commit a cognizable offence".

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