Four Decades of Unanswered Questions: Nakodar 1986 Police Firing Victim's Father Makes Final Appeal
In a poignant development that underscores the enduring pain of unresolved historical tragedies, Baldev Singh, the 79-year-old father of one of the four Sikh youths killed in the Nakodar police firing of February 4, 1986, has sent what he describes as a "final and formal" representation to Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann. This emotional appeal comes just days before the 40th anniversary of the incident that claimed his son Ravinder Singh's life along with three others.
The Haunting Memory That Drives a Lifelong Struggle
Baldev Singh remains the sole surviving parent who witnessed the aftermath firsthand. A day after the fatal police firing in Nakodar, he was the only person permitted to see the bodies of his 19-year-old son Ravinder Singh and the other three victims. That searing memory continues to fuel his relentless pursuit of truth and accountability, even as he approaches his eighth decade. In his letter dated January 27, 2024, Singh expressed profound disillusionment, stating that after forty years of exhausting every democratic, constitutional, and legal avenue, he has "no hope left from any organ of the government" unless immediate and concrete action is taken before February 4.
A Lonely Battle for Justice
For nearly a decade, Baldev Singh and his wife Baldip Kaur have carried the torch alone in their quest for justice. The parents of the other three victims—Baldhir Singh from Ramgarh village, Jhilman Singh from Gorsian, and Harminder Singh from Chaluper—have all passed away, leaving the elderly couple as the last living voices directly connected to the tragedy. The incident itself occurred when police opened fire on a group protesting the burning of "Birs" (sacred volumes) of Guru Granth Sahib, which had taken place two days earlier at a gurdwara in Nakodar.
Decades of Institutional Inaction
The comprehensive letter meticulously details how this issue has been raised repeatedly over four decades before numerous authorities without yielding results. These appeals have been made to:
- Multiple chief ministers of Punjab
- The speaker of the Punjab legislative assembly
- Various MLAs across party lines
- The governor of Punjab
- The President of India
- Members of Parliament in both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha
- Constitutional courts, including the Punjab and Haryana High Court
Despite these persistent efforts, justice remains frustratingly elusive. The document places on record that the inaction on the Justice Gurnam Singh Commission of Inquiry and the mysterious disappearance of Part II of the judicial report have been raised multiple times in the Punjab assembly by opposition leaders and MLAs from various political parties, as well as at the national level by MPs.
Four Core Demands for Closure
In his final appeal, Baldev Singh reiterates four fundamental demands that he believes could bring some measure of closure to this decades-old case:
- Referral to CBI: The case should be handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation for an independent, time-bound inquiry.
- Full Disclosure: The complete Justice Gurnam Singh Commission report along with the action taken report must be tabled in the Punjab Vidhan Sabha.
- Special Investigation Team: Constitution of a credible, high-level SIT to trace the missing Part II of the judicial report and fix responsibility for its disappearance.
- Transparency: Disclosure of findings from the SIT that was constituted in May 2023 to investigate aspects of this case.
A Test of Moral Courage and Institutional Integrity
Characterizing the matter as a crucial test of "moral courage and institutional integrity," the letter concludes with a powerful statement that history will ultimately judge not how long justice was delayed, but whether the state chose to act when it still had the opportunity. As the 40th anniversary approaches, this final plea represents both a personal cry for closure and a broader challenge to Punjab's governance systems to address historical injustices that continue to haunt survivors and their families.
