New Delhi: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and senior advocate H.S. Phoolka on Tuesday accused the Congress Parliamentary Party (CPP) Chairperson Sonia Gandhi of attempting to give a “clean chit” to her husband and former Prime Minister late Rajiv Gandhi, after she said that the delay in the deployment of the Army during the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, was due to certain concerns by the then-Army Chief.
This comes after Sonia Gandhi in her memoir, ‘Belonging: A Journey of Love’ said, “Although the Chief of the Army Staff General A.S. Vaidya had received his orders the same night as the assassination, we heard later that he had decided not to mobilise the nearest units because they were manned by Sikh soldiers, a factor that might have exacerbated the situation.”
Phoolka, while addressing a press conference, alleged that Sonia Gandhi, in her book, “is trying to give a clean chit to Rajiv Gandhi and her family” in connection with the 1984 anti-Sikh massacre, while calling her claims “contrary” to official records.
“The explanations given in the book for the delay in deploying the Army in Delhi contradict the findings of both the Misra Commission and the Nanavati Commission reports,” he said.
He also accused the then Rajiv Gandhi-led government of not deploying the nearly 6,000 soldiers who were available in Delhi on the morning of November 1, 1984.
“If the Army had been deployed on time, the lives of about 2,000 Sikhs could have been saved,” Phoolka added.
Asserting that the claim made in Sonia Gandhi’s memoir is contrary to the facts available on record, the BJP leader said: “Firstly, General Vaidya did not decide against calling in Sikh soldiers because he lacked trust in them. Secondly, nearly 6,000 soldiers were already available in Delhi on October 31.”
To substantiate his claim, Phoolka, also a senior lawyer, cited the report of the Misra Commission, which said that around 6,100 troops were available in Delhi on the night of October 31 and the morning of November 1, but they were not deployed.
“The Commission further observed that if 5,000 of these soldiers had been deployed on the streets of Delhi on the morning of November 1, the lives of at least 2,000 Sikhs could have been saved. The Nanavati Commission also made similar observations in its report,” he noted.
Phoolka also said that Army Chief General A.S. Vaidya had also given a statement on the matter.
“In his testimony before the Misra Commission, the then Army Chief General Vaidya clearly stated that he himself felt adequate military presence should be maintained in Delhi. For this purpose, he contacted the General Officer Commanding (GOC), Delhi, who informed him that 6,000 troops were available in the national capital. General Vaidya had also requisitioned troops from Meerut, and these forces reached Delhi on the night of October 31 itself,” the BJP leader added.
Phoolka said that nowhere in General Vaidya’s testimony did he state that the Prime Minister (Rajiv Gandhi) had instructed him to call in the Army, and therefore, according to the senior lawyer, Sonia Gandhi’s claim is “completely contrary to the official record”.
“According to the Misra Commission report, Rajiv Gandhi had alerted General Vaidya,” he admitted, however, emphasising that the Army Chief’s responsibility is to keep the Army ready, not to deploy it.
“The responsibility for requisitioning and deploying the Army lies with the civil administration. Yet, the civil administration neither called in nor deployed the Army,” the BJP leader alleged.
Questioning the steps taken by the-then PM Rajiv Gandhi, Phoolka said: “If Rajiv Gandhi was not responsible for the events, then what steps did he take against those responsible for not calling in and deploying the Army that was available on the morning of November 1?”
Recalling Rajiv Gandhi’s speech after the riots, where he had remarked “When a big tree falls, the earth shakes a little”, referring to the assassination of late former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, the BJP leader accused him of justifying the massacre against the Sikhs.
“Rajiv Gandhi’s statement amounted to an attempt to justify the massacre,” Phoolka said.
(IANS)
