Library
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Army Assault 1984: A Study Of The Sikh Reference Library Before And After Operation Bluestar Dr. Sukhdev Singh Jhand & Dr. Santokh Singh Shaharyar Religion and Libraries The libraries in the ancient and medieval periods were attached to the places of worship. Their main aim was to propagate the religion through the medium of books, manuscripts and other reading material. The persons who used to come to the churches, mosques, temples, etc. for worship, also visited these libraries and became the users of these libraries. Keeping this view point in mind, the Sikh Reference Library, Amritsar was established in the Golden Temple Complex which also houses the office of SGPC, Amritsar. Many scholars, not only from Punjab, but also from India and abroad visited this library. Mr. W.H. Mcleod, a great authority on Sikh history and religion was a regular visitor of this library. Many other scholars consulted this library from time to time for their different research works. The Sikh Reference Library The Sikh Reference Library, Amritsar was established in 1946, vide Resolution No. 822 dated 27.10 1946 of the Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee (S.G.P.C.)1. No doubt, the credit for establishing this library goes to the S.G.P.C., but a significant role was played by the ‘Sikh Historical Society’ (SHC) established as early as in 1930 at Lahore under the leadership of Bawa Budh Singh. Though the Society could not remain active after the death of its founder, yet it sowed the seeds for establishing a central library, which could house the literature related to Sikh Gurus, Sikh religion and the related fields. As a result, a meeting of the Sikh scholars, historians and others interested in this cause was held on Feburary 10,1945 at Khalsa College, Amritsar, under the presidentship of Princess Bamba, daughter of Late Maharaja Duleep Singh, the youngest son of Maharaja Ranjit Singh. In this meeting, ‘Sikh History Society’ was formed and its formal meeting was held at Teja Singh Samundri Hall on April 29,19452, in which bye-laws of the Society were passed and a working committee comprising of Prof. Teja Singh, Bawa Prem Singh, Bawa Harikrishan Singh, Prof. Gurmukh Nihal Singh and Prof. Ganda Singh was constituted, which became instrumental in bringing out the concept of establishment of Central Sikh Library into reality. Later on, the name was changed to the Sikh Reference Library (SRL) keeping in view the nature of collection of this library, which included mainly the reference books like hand-written Sikh scriptures-the holy Guru Granth Sahib, Hukamnamas, Rehatnamas, books on Sikh history, art, culture, literature, religion and other reference material like encyclopedias, dictionaries, almanacs, biographies, etc. Collection/Development of the library In the beginning, the library could not collect the required material due to its limited resources as the library then worked independently and it could not get financial assistance from any institution. But, on becoming an official organ of the S.G.P.C. on February 8, 1947, the entire responsibility of maintaining the library was undertaken by the S.G.P.C. A spacious Hall No. 4 in the Guru Ram Das Sarai was reserved for this purpose and the library started functioning from this place. The library was shifted to the present place, i.e., Bhai Santokh Singh Hall later in the ’fifties. Primary sources related to Sikh Gurus, the Khalsa, Hukamnamas, Pattaas, Sanads, old paintings, rare books and journals were kept in the library for the consultation of scholars working on Sikh religion, history and culture. According to a historical document published by the Sikh History Society in 1950, there were 2335 manuscripts and books in Punjabi, ten in Assamese and two in Sindhi. There was one book in French also. Later on, about 400 books in English and one in French were added to the library-stock3. According to Sada Hatth-Likhat Panjabi Sahit (1968) by Shamsher Singh Ashok amongst other meaningful reading material, there were 383 manuscripts dealing with 980 different subjects4. As per the statement of former incharge of Sikh History Research Board, Devinder Singh Duggal, there were 2500 manuscripts of the holy Guru Granth Sahib including the one Bhai Hardas Wali Bir containing a page bearing handwritten Mool Mantra by Shri Guru Teg Bahadur Ji and so many other illustrated Birs, and Janam Sakhis, etc. Other documents included Kavender Prakash by Nihal Singh, Ajit Sagar by Surjan Das Ajaat, Bhagat Sudhasar by Bhai Bidhi Chand, Bhagat Premakar by Kavi Jassa Singh, Bansavali Nama by Kesar Singh Chhiber, Parchi Maha Sundar Salhiar, Guru Nanak Chandruddya and many other invaluable Granths by Udasis, Nirmalas, Meharbani and Niranjani sects, which are not available at any other library. The latest figure of the library-stock, according to Devinder Singh Duggal, had touched 20,000 mark before the destruction of the library in the operation Bluestar in June 19845. At present the stock of the library stands at 13,008, which includes about 400 Birs of Guru Granth Sahib and 173 other manuscripts/rare-books and about 100 reference books. It shows that a number of books and other reading material has been burnt/lost during the operation Bluestar. A few journals/magazines in English and Punjabi are also being subscribed, the number of which is about 20. Apart from this, 12 journals are received gratis. Annual Budget of the library is only Rs. I ,85,000/-6, which is not sufficient for the purchase of new books and journals in the library. Library Management The library established by the S.G.P.C., is being run
by a Board consisting of five to seven members constituted by the
S.G.P.C. Eminent educationists, historians and scholars, like Dr. Ganda
Singh, Karam Singh Zakhmi, Shamsher Singh Ashok, S.S. Amol, Devinder
Singh Vidyarthi, Surjit Singh Gandhi, Devinder Singh Duggal, Dr.
Harjinder Singh Dilgir have remained members of this Board. But, now
most of the members are political rather than the educationists. This
Board serves as the Library Committee of the Sikh Reference Library. The
Secretary of the Board conducts the proceedings of its various meetings
held three to four times in a year. Dr. Jasbir Singh Sabar and Dr.
Kulwant Singh, who later became professors at Guru Nanak Dev University
and Khalsa College, Amritsar, respectively, have remained librarians of
this great library, although they were not professionally trained. The
present librarian is professionally/qualified and trained. He manages
the day to day affairs of the library. He is assisted by two staff
members - one Library Assistant and a Sewadar (Library Attendant). The
library has a partially closed system. The reference and general books
related to religion, history and culture have been shelved on the
book-stacks which have open access to the readers. However, the
manuscripts (Handwritten copies of Guru Granth Sahib and other religion
books) are under lock and key. About 15 to 20 readers daily visit the
library for their research requirements. The books have been classified
by the Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC) system using its 19th edition
and a Card Catalogue using AACR-II rules has been maintained. The
library has yet not been compuerized, although an effort was made in
this direction at one stage by acquiring two PC’s, two printers, (one
Dot Matrix and one laser) alongwith a scanner. But, these were later
shifted to the Office of the S.G.P.C. under the orders of the Secretary.
Computerization of this library is immediately needed in this era of
information and technology, for serving its users more efficiently. Membership of the library is open to all who want to consult it for their study and research purposes. No membership fee is charged. As the name suggests, it is a reference library. As such, no member is allowed to borrow any book even for a night. Library remains open from 9.30 A.M. to 4.30 P.M. Sundays and 25 other holidays notified by the S.G.P.C., which include the Gurpurabs, Holi Maghi, DiwaIi, Vaisakhi, etc. are observed as holidays. The library remains open on all other days of the year, including the national holidays. The Great Destruction This library was supposedly destroyed during the attack on the Golden Temple by the Indian Army in Bluestar Operation in the first week of June 1984. The Army version says that the library caught fire during the exchange of fire with militants who had taken shelter in premises of the Golden Temple. This reminds us of the destruction of the Great Alexandrian Library in the fire during war between Romans and Julius Caesar in 47 B.C. in which 7,50,000 manuscripts were burnt in the fire7. According to an estimate, books and furniture worth Rs. 22,62,000/- were destroyed during the Blue Star Operation, 1984 (Appendix -1)8. This is apart from the price of handwritten holy scriptures of Shri Guru Granth Sahib, which is invaluable. Another version says that the library was damaged only partially during the Operation, and most of the reading material was carried away later, by the Army, in gunny bags and steel trunks, to a safer place. The same has not been returned to the S.G.P.C., who has claimed it a number of times from the Government of India. Mr. Ranjit Singh Nanda, former Inspector of the Punjab Police, who remained on deputation with the CBI for a couple of years, has confirmed the claims of SGPC that the material was lying with the CBI. In a report published in The Tribune dated 12.06.20029, he says that he had enough proof to substantiate his claim that the Army had taken away invaluable material from the Sikh Reference Library and handed it over to the CBI. According to an estimate, more than 20,000 books of the value of Rs. 20 lacs, 2500 hand-written volumes of holy Sikh scriptures, about 500 handwritten rare-books/documents relating to Sikh tenets and traditions and 200 copies (typed) of rare books/documents were either burnt or taken out from the Sikh Reference Library by the Indian Army. A list of the documents destroyed/lost during the operation Blustar has been given in the Appendix Il-A and B10. Interestingly, the statements issued by the Defence Minister, Mr. George Fernandes have created confusion on this issue. Responding to a letter of S.G.P.C. dated 27.03.2000, Mr Fernandes informed Dr. Gurbachan Singh Bachan, Former Secretary, S.G.P.C that ‘the books and documents that were received from the Sikh Reference Library, Golden Temple, had been handed over to the CBI by the Army11. He advised the S.G.P.C authorities to contact Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, to which the CBI is attached, to get back this material. The S.G.P.C then pursued the case with the CBI. It is worth mentioning here that so far only 67 items mentioned in the Appendix-Ill12 have been received back from the CBI by the S.G.P.C. This list of 67 items (documents) includes important material such as bound volumes of some of the old newspaper, Asian Recorder and small booklets, etc. One of the items Rehatname (5 copies) is much more important from the research point of view. According to the above report of the Newspaper "The S.G.P.C and renowned Sikh scholars are of the view that more than 90 percent material of the Sikh Reference Library was still intact and should be returned to the S.G.P.C immediately. Otherwise, this invaluable material could get destroyed without proper maintenance."13 Whatever the different versions of the Indian Army, the CBI or the SGPC may be, the reading material either might have been lost in fire during the Operation Bluestar, or still in the possession of Indian Army, or the CBI, it is indeed an irreparable loss to this great library and, particularly, to the Sikh heritage. Even if the material is lying with the CBI or the Army, it might not be in a condition to be re-installed in the library because of lack of its maintenance and the time-lag of more than eighteen years. However, efforts should be made by the S.G.P.C and other concerned authorities to recover it as soon as possible and get it re-installed in the library. References 1. Dhillon, Mohinder Singh Blue Star Ghallughara (Pbi) Patiala: Madaan Publishers, 1991. p. 103. 2. Ibid. p. 104. 3. Ibid. p. 104. 4. Ashok, Shamsher Singh. Saada Hath-Likhat Panjabi Sahit: A descriptive catalogue of manuscripts and rare books in Guru Ram Das Library and Central Sikh Museum. AmritsarL Sikh History Research Board, 1968, 520 p. 5. "CBI in spot over Sikh Reference Library: A report". The Tribune, Chandigarh dated 12.6.2000 p. 1 column 6. 6. Gurdwara Gazette, V. 78, No. 5 (May 2002), pp. 45-46. 7. Marshall, D.N., History of Libraries: Ancient and Medervel, Delhi: Oxford & IBM Pub. Co. 1983, pp. 20-21. 8. Estimated loss of Sikh References Library. 9. The Tribune, dated 12.6.2001, p.1, column6. 10. The list of documents supposed to have been destroyed during Bhai Shar Operation. The list have been received from the office of S.G.P.C., Amritsar. 11. The Tribune, dated 12.6.2001, p. 8, Column 3. 12. List of documents received back from the CBI. This list has been obtained from S.G.P.C. Office, Amritsar. 13. The Tribune, dated 12.6.2002, p. 8, column 3. |
