1991 Punjab killings
| 1991 Punjab killings | |
|---|---|
| Location | Ludhiana district, Punjab, India |
| Date | June-Dec 1991 |
| Target | Hindus |
Attack type | Mass shooting |
| Deaths | 125 |
| Perpetrators | Khalistan Commando Force[1] |
| Motive | Sikh Separatism Persecution of Hindus |
30°52′59″N 75°51′00″E / 30.883°N 75.85°E The 1991 Punjab killings were a series of train massacres that occurred on 15 June 1991 and 27 December 1991 in the Ludhiana district of the Indian State of Punjab. Khalistani militants killed 125 Hindu passengers[2][1] in these incidents.
Events
[edit]June 1991
[edit]The militants stopped the two trains about a kilometre from Ludhiana station by pulling the emergency cords, triggering emergency brakes. They proceeded to open fire inside the trains at around 9:35 p.m. (IST), killing at least 80 passengers.[3] After the attackers fled, the train moved back to Badduwal station, where the rescue team arrived with doctors. Local villagers helped the survivors with food, water, medicine, and mental support.[4] The attacks came less than five hours after polling closed in a national election already marred by violence and interrupted by the assassination of ex-Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi around a month prior.[4]
December 1991
[edit]On 27 December, four men, believed to have been Khalistani, boarded a local passenger train travelling from Ludhiana to Ferozepur at Ludhiana. They pulled the emergency cord about 7:30 in the evening near a village called Sohian. Six other armed militants climbed aboard the train at the Sohian crossing. The militants shot at passengers who appeared to be Hindu using AK-47s. All but two of the 49 victims were Hindus. After the massacre, the gunmen left the train and disappeared into the night.[5]
References
[edit]- ^ a b "A year after Hardeep Singh Nijjar's death, mysteries remain about how he really lived". The Globe and Mail. 2024.
In 1991, KCF militants boarded a train, separated Sikhs from Hindus, then slaughtered 125 Hindus, many of them children.
- ^ "Sikhs attack India trains, killing 126". Chicago Sun-Times. 17 June 1991. Archived from the original on 15 June 2011. Retrieved 21 March 2018.
- ^ "110 in two trains gunned down by Punjab militants". The Indian Express. 16 June 1991. p. 1. Retrieved 9 December 2019.
- ^ a b Crossette, Barbara (16 June 1991). "Extremists in India Kill 80 on 2 Trains As Voting Nears End". The New York Times. Retrieved 21 March 2018.
- ^ Gargan, Edward A. (27 December 1991). "49 Slain by Gunmen on Train in India". The New York Times. Retrieved 21 March 2018.
External links
[edit]- "74 were killed in Punjab train carnage". The Indian Express. 17 June 1991. p. 5. Retrieved 9 December 2019.
See also
[edit]- 1987 Punjab killings
- List of Victims of Terrorism in Indian Punjab
- List of bus killings during Punjab insurgency
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- Mass murder in 1991
- Terrorist incidents in India in 1991
- Insurgency in Punjab
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- Anti-Hindu violence in India
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