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Revision as of 18:09, 2 March 2007 by Bullamail (talk | contribs)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)The Chittisinghpura massacre refers to the murder of 35 adherents of the religion of Sikhism (called Sikhs].
The killings
The killers were disguised in Indian Army fatigues.Former US president in his New Book, written by Madeleine Albright titled The Mighty and the Almighty: Reflections on America, God, and World Affairs (2006) and the New York Times revealed that the Indian Army was involved in the killings TThe However the Indian Govt claimed that Islamic millitants carried out the killings.
Aftermath
The killings of 36 Sikhs was a turning point in Kashmir where Sikhs had usually been spared of militant violence.
The villagers ensured that the local school was up and running just two weeks after the killings. The massacre had created suspicion between the Sikh and Muslim residents of the area, but no problems developed in the joint Muslim-Sikh school in the village.
In 2005, Sikh organizations such as the Bhai Kanahiya Jee Nishkam Seva Society demanded a deeper state inquiry into the details of the massacre and that the inquiry be made public.The state government ordered an inquiry into the massacre. A day after the inquiry was ordered,an NDTV special correspondent Barkha Dutt went to the village. The inquiry will also investigate allegations that local Indian security forces were involved in the massacre .
Clinton Controversy
The massacre coincided with the visit of United States president Bill Clinton to India. In an introduction to a book written by Madeleine Albright titled The Mighty and the Almighty: Reflections on America, God, and World Affairs (2006), he accused "Hindu Militants" of perpetrating the act. The error created a major fury, with Hindu terrorist groups expressing outrage at the error.Clinton's office did not return calls seeking comment or clarification.In the hours immediately after the massacre in March 2000, the US condemned the killings but refused to accept the Indian governments contention that it was the work of Pakistan based Islamist groups. However under pressure from the Indian Government which wants to hide the truth,the publishers,Harper Collins routed a correction through Albrights office.
Page xi of the Mighty and the Almighty contains a reference to Hindu militants that will be deleted in subsequent printings, both in America and in international editions.
Mishra Controversy
The error was aggrandized by Clinton's refusal to acknowledge it, and exacerbated by anti-Hindu author Pankaj Mishras book Temptations of the West: How to be Modern in India, Pakistan, Tibet and Beyond where he persisted in the allegations against Hindus even after the orced confession of the Lashkar-e-Toiba militant.Such intransigence has earned him accusations of being an anti-Hindu, and of "pandering to white pro-Muslim audiences in the West".
Chittisinghpura massacre in film
The massacre was depicted in the commercial Bollywood film Adharm (unholy) directed by Adeep Singh.
References
- ^ Clinton goofs up on J&K killings,Times of India
- Mishra, Pankaj, Temptations of the West : How to Be Modern in India, Pakistan, Tibet, and Beyond,
- The New Yorker 2006
