The period of militancy in Punjab left in its wake immense suffering. The era marks the concept of state terrorism in its most notorious form. The most heart-rending story is that of the "Bandi Singhs." These are Sikhs of Punjab who were arrested for alleged involvement in militant activities, charged under law, found guilty of various crimes and meted out sentences ranging from death to different terms of imprisonment.

These Sikhs were not criminals, they were misguided and misled youth who opted for militancy to further their political and community beliefs and give vent to their frustration on being given a raw deal by the Government of the day. Undoubtedly, their means were not correct and they deserved punishment, but, the same should have been of a nature that is given to political dissidents, not criminals. Also, once the period of militancy waned and gradually petered out, these Bandi Singhs too should have been given clemency, based on good behaviour, assurance to live in accordance with constitutional norms and a commitment to abjure violence of any kind. Very sadly, they were and continue to be treated like common criminals.
Presently, most continue to remain in jails even though they have, since long, completed their prison terms; they are now in advanced age, posing no threat of indulging in violent activity and in need of family support to look after their physical needs.
A movement for release of the Bandi Singhs has been going on for a long time now. Many political parties and Sikh Panthic (religious) organisations have been raising this demand from time to time. The efforts, however, have a sheen of political opportunism since they gain momentum for political ends and peter down once the political objective is achieved, only to be resurrected again.
This lack of interest is quite evident from the fact that a deep search on the internet does not bring out any concerted effort in the direction of their release. The organisations (religious, political, social) that have, from time to time, approached the Union Government with requests for release of the Bandi Singhs have provided incomplete and factually incorrect details, for which reason, the government's response has not been holistic and all-encompassing.
The intention of this article is to represent the case of all Bandi Singhs but to ensure ease of understanding the most significant cases are being addressed first. If these cases find closure then the path for identification of others and their release will automatically open up.
The prominent Sikhs involved are identified as follows:-
Lakhwinder Singh, Gurmeet Singh, Shamsher Singh were tried by the court of the Union Territory of Chandigarh. They were convicted and are presently in the Burail Jail.
Gurdeep Singh Khera was held guilty by a court in Karnataka, he was lodged in a jail in the state earlier but is now reported to be in Amritsar jail.
Devinder Pal Singh Bhullar was held guilty by a Delhi court, he remained in Tihar jail and is now reported to be in Nabha jail.
Balwant Singh Rajaona was pronounced guilty for the assassination of Punjab Chief Minister Beant Singh in 1995. He was scheduled to be hanged on March 31, 2012. However, the execution was stayed on 28 March, 2012, by the then UPA government on the basis of a mercy petition to the President of India filed by the SGPC. Later, in 2019, his death sentence was recommended to be commuted to life imprisonment by the NDA Government. The Supreme Court on May 2, 2022, directed the Centre to decide in two months on the petition. He is presently in Patiala jail.
Jagtar Singh Hawara was also found guilty of being a conspirator in the assassination of former Punjab Chief Minister Beant Singh and is presently in Tihar jail, Delhi. Hawara is also a high level member of Babbar Khalsa and has been declared Jathedar Akal Takth by the rival SAD (Amritsar) group. The declaration has been contested by the SGPC.
Paramjit Singh Behora and Jagtar Singh Tara are in Burail jail, Chandigarh.
Lal Singh was held guilty by a court in Gujarat and lodged in Nabha jail. He has since been released
Waryam Singh was held guilty by a court in Uttar Pradesh and he is in Bareilly jail. He has since been released
Most had been convicted under the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities Act (TADA) that was first enacted in 1985, basically to tackle terrorism in Punjab. Since the act had a sunset provision of two years, it lapsed a number of times before being done away with in 1995 due to increasing public dissent. So, the detainees are interned on the basis of an act that is no longer relevant.
In the aforementioned cases there are contradictory reports regarding their status which again points to the inability of the handling organisations in creating a single point availability of all data which would assist the Union and state governments in decision making and also motivate media personnel, social organisations etc in taking up the case.
In 2019, several Sikh organisations approached the Union Government with a request to release eight/nine prominent Sikhs (most from among the list given above)in commemoration of the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev Ji. The Union Government immediately agreed to grant a special dispensation to the mentioned Sikh interns and also agreed to commute the death sentence of Balwant Singh Rajaona to life imprisonment through a special remission.
On October 11, 2019, the Union government issued a notification, for release of eight Sikh prisoners and took up with the Supreme Court the matter of commutation of death sentence to life imprisonment for Rajoana. According to this notification, the eight to be released were Lal Singh, Nand Singh, Subeg Singh, Balbir Singh, Waryam Singh, Harjinder Singh, Devinderpal Singh Bhullar and Gurdeep Singh Khera. The decision was welcomed by Sikhs worldwide as a step that would assuage the sentiments of the community. A communication is believed to have been sent by the Union Government to the concerned states. (To Be Continued)

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