Channi Calls for BJP's Apology on 1984 Golden Temple Attack

Senior Congress leader Charanjit Singh Channi has declared that the 1984 attack on the Golden Temple was wrong and urged the BJP-RSS to apologize for their role. Channi accused the BJP-RSS of pressuring the government for the Army operation and demanded accountability from the current BJP leadership.

Senior Congress leader and former Punjab chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi on Friday stated that the 1984 'attack' on the Golden Temple was 'wrong' and emphasized that his party has already extended an apology for the incident. He accused the BJP-RSS of pressuring the government to carry out the Army operation at the sacred shrine.

Addressing the media at the All India Congress Committee (AICC) headquarters, Channi alleged that the BJP-RSS created a national environment pressuring the Congress government of the time into launching an attack on the 'Akal Takht'. He claimed one of the primary motivations for the attack was the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) nationwide movement and processions demanding action.

'The BJP and the RSS should apologize to the Sikhs at Harmandir Sahib,' Channi insisted. When questioned about why Jagdish Tytler, facing charges in the anti-Sikh riots case, has not been expelled from the Congress, Channi reiterated his party's multiple apologies for the violent events during their rule. He questioned the BJP's decade-long power without handing out the necessary punishments, urging them to acknowledge their movement's role in the 1984 attack, which has been documented in senior BJP leader L.K. Advani's book 'My Country, My Life.'

(With inputs from agencies.)