By Shishir Prashant 
PrashantNews
Families of victims of the 1984 anti-Sikh riots joined members and leaders of the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (DSGMC) in burning copies of Congress leader Sonia Gandhi’s recently released memoir at Rakab Ganj Gurdwara in New Delhi on Thursday. The protesters objected to her account of the anti-Sikh violence, alleging that it failed to present the truth about the killings in which thousands of Sikhs lost their lives.
The protest was organised over Sonia Gandhi’s description of the violence in her memoir, in which she refers to the breakdown of governance following the assassination of then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in October 1984.
In the book, Sonia Gandhi defends her husband and former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, saying that his “heart held no bigotry or rancour”, but that he was thrust into a moment in history when the governance machinery had collapsed, paving the way for barbarism.
Recounting the events following Indira Gandhi’s assassination by her Sikh bodyguards on October 31, 1984, Sonia writes that news of the killing spread rapidly. While many had initially welcomed the elimination of Khalistani militant leader Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, the situation changed dramatically after the assassination.
“By the afternoon, rioting had broken out in different parts of the city and beyond. Brutal acts of violence were committed against innocent Sikhs. More than 2,000 lost their lives in the capital alone, in the most cruel and cold-blooded manner,” she writes.
Her account has, however, drawn criticism from BJP leaders, who have alleged that certain details mentioned in the memoir contradict official records.
The protest at Rakab Ganj Gurdwara has brought the 1984 anti-Sikh riots back into the political spotlight, with the protesters objecting to what they consider an inadequate and misleading portrayal of the violence and the responsibility of those in power at the time.
Thousands of Sikhs were killed in the violence that erupted in the aftermath of Indira Gandhi’s assassination, with Delhi bearing the brunt of the attacks.