Five hundred years ago, a gentle prophet returning to his home in the Punjab came upon a terrible scene. The residents of the town of Sayyidpur had been put to the sword by a mighty Uzbek conqueror who had swooped down from the highlands of Afghanistan. The carnage was unbelievable, and the anguish of the survivors tore the prophet’s heart to shreds.
Four centuries later, another horde took to the streets in the city once called Ramdaspur, now known as Amritsar. Directing it was the haughty doyenne of the Nehru clan, who perhaps aspired to create a dynasty rivalling the mighty Mughals. Its helmsmen were the leaders of one of the most powerful armies in the world. They bore down upon a place of great calm and repose that over time had become the visible heart of the faith that Guru Nanak was on his way to establishing. The end result was no less gruesome than the depredations of Babar. We know this today.
As I reflect on the thirty-fifth anniversary of Operation Blue Star, Mrs Gandhi’s ill-considered attack on the Sri Harmandir Sahib in Amritsar, Guru Nanak’s powerful words spoken to Babar, who would go on to establish the mighty Mughal empire, echo in my mind.
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