Jagjit Singh Chauhan
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Jagjit Singh Chohan was the founder of the
Khalistan movement The Khalistan movement is a Sikh separatist movement seeking to create a homeland for Sikhs by establishing a sovereign state, called Khālistān (' Land of the Khalsa'), in the Punjab region. The proposed state would consist of land that cu ...
that sought to create an independent Sikh state in the Punjab region of India and Pakistan.


Politics

Jagjit Singh grew up in Tanda in
Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising a ...
's
Hoshiarpur Hoshiarpur () is a city and a municipal corporation in Hoshiarpur district in the Doaba region of the Indian state of Punjab. It was founded, according to tradition, during the early part of the fourteenth century. In 1809, it was occupied b ...
district, about 180 km from
Chandigarh Chandigarh () is a planned city in India. Chandigarh is bordered by the state of Punjab to the west and the south, and by the state of Haryana to the east. It constitutes the bulk of the Chandigarh Capital Region or Greater Chandigarh, which a ...
. He was a dentist. Chohan was first elected to the Punjab Assembly from the Tanda as a candidate of the Republican Party of India in 1967. He became Deputy Speaker when the Akali Dal-led coalition Government took office in Punjab. When
Lachhman Singh Gill Lachhman Singh Gill (1917 – 26 April 1969) was an Indian politician who served as the 12th Chief Minister of Punjab. He remained in this post from 25 November 1967 to 22 August 1968. He was a member of Shiromani Akali Dal(SAD), a Sikh-cente ...
became Chief Minister, Chohan was made Finance Minister. In 1969, he lost the Assembly election.


Activity Overseas

Two years after losing the Punjab Assembly elections in 1969, Chohan moved to the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
to start his campaign for creation of Khalistan. In 1971, he went to
Nankana Sahib Nankana Sahib () is a city and capital of Nankana Sahib District in the Punjab province of Pakistan. It is named after the first Guru of the Sikhs, Guru Nanak, who was born in the city and first began preaching here. Nankana Sahib is the mos ...
in
Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...
to attempt to set up a Sikh government. Chohan was invited by Pakistani army dictator
Yahya Khan General Agha Muhammad Yahya Khan , (Urdu: ; 4 February 1917 – 10 August 1980); commonly known as Yahya Khan, was a Pakistani military general who served as the third President of Pakistan and Chief Martial Law Administrator following his p ...
and was proclaimed as a Sikh leader. Certain Sikh relics that were in Pakistan were handed down to him and taken to UK. The relics had helped Chohan to gather Sikh supporters and followers. He then visited the United States at the invitation of his supporters among the Sikh diaspora. On 13 October 1971, he paid for an ad in the ''
New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' claiming an Independent Sikh state. Advertisement of Khalistan enabled him to collect millions of dollars from the
Sikh diaspora The Sikh diaspora is the modern Sikh migration from the traditional area of the Punjab region of India. Sikhism is a religion, the Punjab region of India being the historic homeland of Sikhism. The Sikh diaspora is largely a subset of the Pu ...
. In later part of 1970s, Chohan was in touch with the Pakistani diplomatic mission in Pakistan with objective of encouraging Sikh youths to travel to Pakistan for pilgrimage and indoctrination for separatist propaganda. On 12 April 1980, he declared the formation of a "National Council of Khalistan", at
Anandpur Sahib Anandpur Sahib, sometimes referred to simply as Anandpur (lit. "city of bliss"), is a city in Rupnagar district (Ropar), on the edge of Shivalik Hills, in the Indian state of Punjab. Located near the Sutlej River, the city is one of the most ...
. He declared himself the President of the Council and Balbir Singh Sandhu as its Secretary General. In 1977, he returned to India. Chohan travelled to Britain in 1979, and established the Khalistan National Council.The New York Times, USA, "LONDON SIKH ASSUMES ROLE OF EXILE CHIEF"
14 June 1984
In May 1980, Jagjit Singh Chohan travelled to
London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
and announced the formation of Khalistan. A similar announcement was made by Balbir Singh Sandhu, in Amritsar, who released stamps and currency of Khalistan. Operating from a building termed "Khalistan House", he remained in contact with the Sikh leader
Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale (; born Jarnail Singh Brar; 2 June 1947– 6 June 1984) was a militant leader of the Sikh organization Damdami Taksal. He was not an advocate of Khalistan. "Bhindranwale was not an outspoken supporter of Khalistan, ...
who was campaigning for a Sikh theocratic homeland. Chohan also maintained contacts among various groups in Canada, the US, and Germany. He visited Pakistan as a guest of leaders like Chaudhuri Zahoor Elahi. Chohan declared himself president of the "Republic of Khalistan", named a Cabinet, and issued symbolic Khalistan "passports", "postage stamps", and "Khalistan dollars". It is reported that with the assistance of a wealthy Californian supporter, a peach magnate, he opened an Ecuadorian bank account to support his operation.


Operation Blue Star and later

In June 1983, Bhindranwale was asked: "If Jagjit Singh Chohan attacks
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
with assistance from England, America, and Canada, whom will you help?" Bhindranwale hedged and did not indicate his support. On 12 June 1984, in London Chohan was interviewed by BBC. The interviewer asked: "Do you actually want to see the downfall of Mrs Gandhi's Government?" Chohan answered: "..within a few days you will have the news that Mrs Gandhi and her family have been beheaded. That is what Sikhs will do..". After this interview, the Thatcher government curtailed Chohan's activities. On 13 June 1984, Chohan announced a government in exile. On 31 October 1984, Indira Gandhi was assassinated. Chohan visited Punjab in 1989 and hoisted the flag of Khalistan at a gurdwara in
Anandpur Sahib Anandpur Sahib, sometimes referred to simply as Anandpur (lit. "city of bliss"), is a city in Rupnagar district (Ropar), on the edge of Shivalik Hills, in the Indian state of Punjab. Located near the Sutlej River, the city is one of the most ...
. Chohan's Indian passport was cancelled on 24 April 1989. India protested when he was allowed to enter USA using the canceled passport. Vancouver fundamentalists
Talwinder Singh Parmar Talwinder Singh Parmar (26 February 1944 – 15 October 1992) born in Kapurthala, Punjab, India was a sikh kharku. He was also the founder, leader, and Jathedar of Babbar Khalsa International, better known as Babbar Khalsa, a militant Sikh gro ...
and Surjan Singh Gill were at one time aligned with Chohan. He had assisted the
Tamil Tigers The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE; ta, தமிழீழ விடுதலைப் புலிகள், translit=Tamiḻīḻa viṭutalaip pulikaḷ, si, දෙමළ ඊළාම් විමුක්ති කොටි, t ...
International
Federation A federation (also known as a federal state) is a political entity characterized by a union of partially self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a central federal government ( federalism). In a federation, the self-govern ...
in setting up the
assassination of Rajiv Gandhi The assassination of Rajiv Gandhi, former Prime Minister of India, occurred as a result of a suicide bombing in Sriperumbudur in Tamil Nadu, India on 21 May 1991. At least 14 others, in addition to Rajiv Gandhi, were killed. It was carried ou ...
. The Nanavati Commission considered him a co-conspirator in the assassination.


Softening and return

Chohan gradually softened his stance. He supported India's attempts to defuse the tension by accepting surrenders by the militants. Other organizations, mainly in UK and North America, continue to work for a Khalistan. The Indian government first permitted his wife to return and after he was pardoned by the Atal Bihari government, he was allowed to return to India in June 2001, after having been exiled for 21 years. The government decided to overlook his past activities. After his return, in an interview Chohan said he would keep the Khalistan movement alive democratically and pointed out that he has always been against violence.


Khalsa Raj Party

After Chohan returned to India, he started a political party in 2002 named the Khalsa Raj Party and became its president. The stated aim of the political party was to continue his campaign for Khalistan. Chohan could not attract the support from the new generation of Sikhs.
The Pioneer (newspaper) ''Pioneer'' or ''The Pioneer'' is the name of the following newspapers: Australia *''The Federal Capital Pioneer'', newspaper published in Canberra, Australia from 1924–27 * ''The Pioneer'' (South Australia), newspaper published in Yorketown, So ...
stated that his party was a ' Letterhead organization'.


Death

Chohan withdrew himself from the public life in his later years. He died on 4 April 2007, aged 78 due to
heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which ma ...
at his native village Tanda in Hoshiarpur District of Punjab.http://www.telegraphindia.com/1070428/asp/opinion/story_7707446.asp Close the chapter:
Khushwant Singh Khushwant Singh (born Khushal Singh, 2 February 1915 – 20 March 2014) was an Indian author, lawyer, diplomat, journalist and politician. His experience in the 1947 Partition of India inspired him to write ''Train to Pakistan'' in 1956 (made ...
After his death, the Khalistan movement gradually died down.


See also

* Gurmit Singh Aulakh * Separationist *
Separation of church and state The separation of church and state is a philosophical and jurisprudential concept for defining political distance in the relationship between religious organizations and the state. Conceptually, the term refers to the creation of a secular sta ...


References


http://www.ceri-sciencespo.com/archive/mai02/artlg.pdf The globalization of identity politics : the Sikh experience
International Journal of Punjab Studies, 7 (2), July–December 2000 (page 29).
THE KHALISTAN MOVEMENT IN PUNJAB
Meredith Weiss, Yale, 25 June 2002.


External links



June 1983




Childhood Chum
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chohan, Jagjit 1920s births 2007 deaths Punjab, India politicians Punjabi people Sikh politics People from Hoshiarpur district Khalistan movement people Indian Sikhs British people of Indian descent Assassination of Rajiv Gandhi