Indian politics

This file consists of correspondence; reports; statements and press releases; flyers; publications; and press cuttings relating to some of the political developments in India between the mid 1970s and the mid 1990s on which the Indian Workers Association took a position, or which affected people of Indian origin living in Britain.

Papers dating from the 1970s are largely associated with Indian Workers Association campaigns against the policies of Indira Gandhi's government during the period, particularly her repression of opposition political parties and the imposition of a State of Emergency between 1975 and 1977. There are also papers on the activities of Naxalite communist groups in India and related peasant and workers organisations, and material on the Indian Workers Association's campaign to oppose atrocities committed against 'Dalits' or 'Untouchables'.

Papers dating from the 1980s also reflect these themes, but focus more on political unrest in Punjab in the period leading up to the assassination of Indira Gandhi in 1984, agitation by Sikh separatists to create an independent Sikh state of Khalistan, and the effects of the unrest on Asian communities in Britain. Some papers also give an indication of the position taken by the Indian Workers Association on this issue.

The file contains fewer papers dating from the 1990s, but these also largely focus on the themes described above.

/1 letter from City of Birmingham Amenities and Recreation Department to Bhagat Singh, Indian Workers Association Birmingham branch, concerning the booking of Birmingham Town Hall for the election of officers which was also used for a rally in connection with the state of emergency in India, 26 March 1976

/2 typescript report on a one-day conference to Oppose Dictatorship in India, organised by the Indian Workers Association, 26 October 1976

/3 handwritten speech given by a member of the Indian Workers Association Central Executive Committee at a conference organised by a German political group to condemn the policies of Indira Gandhi's government in India during the mid 1970s

/4 handwritten notes by Avtar Jouhl on the policy of the German communist party [KPD] towards the oppression of communists in India during the state of emergency imposed by Indira Gandhi's government in the mid 1970s

/5 petition for the release of Nagabhushan Patnaik and other political prisoners in India, and the repeal of all emergency and anti-democratic laws used to arrest and imprison citizens without charge or trial. The petition was probably set up by a German communist group during the state of emergency in India during the mid 1970s

/6 flyer issued by the Indian Workers Association Birmingham branch giving information about Indian Martyrs' Day celebrations at Birmingham Town Hall which incorporated a rally to demand the release of Naxalite political prisoners and other political prisoners still detained despite the defeat of Indira Gandhi's government in India, 9 April 1977

/7 flyer in English and Punjabi issued by the Indian Workers Association and the Alliance for People's Democratic India giving information about a mass picket for the release of Naxalite and other political prisoners in India, held in front of the Royal Albert Hall, London, 12 June 1977. The flyer includes a list of the organisations' demands, and gives the names of speakers at the event

/8 flyer in Punjabi with diagrams showing methods of torturing political prisoners

/9 information leaflet in English and Punjabi issued by the Indian Workers Association which gives an account of atrocities committed against 'Dalits' or 'untouchables' in India and urges people to support struggles for the liberation of the 'Dalit' peoples, 1978

/10 press release issued by the Indian Peoples' Front and sent to the editor of the Indian Workers Association journal giving details of decision and resolutions adopted at a recent meeting of the National Executive of this organisation. These are mainly concerned with opposing repression of the Bihar peasant movement, and mobilising against the Forest bill which gives further powers to central government. The press release is undated, but is likely to have been issued during the late 1970s

/11 typescript copy of the constitution of the Dalit Youth Association (Derby)

/12-/13 newspaper articles published in 'The Guardian' reporting on the reception received by Indira Gandhi at public meetings and engagements during her visit to Britain in November 1978

/14 copy letter from Avtar Jouhl, General Secretary of the Indian Workers Association, to Indira Gandhi, Prime Minister of India, expressing concern at the grave illness of Nagabhushan Patnaik who has been detained in prison by the Indian government for eleven years. The organisation demands Mr Patnaik's immediate release and the annulment of all emergency and anti-democratic laws in India, 12 December 1980

/15 information leaflet issued by the Indian Workers Association reporting details of the National Security Bill introduced by the Indian government led by Indira Gandhi in December 1980 and the oppression of political opponents, and expressing the Indian Workers Association's opposition to this legislation

/16 typescript paper entitled 'A Report on the Current Situation in India' setting out an account of political developments since the return of Indira Gandhi's Congress government to power in the 1980 election

/17 statement issued by the Patriotic Students Group on police violence in Unnao and Magarwara against a crowd of striking workers at a chemical factory, 8 March 1982

/18-/21 papers relating to a national conference 'to Resist Autocracy' organised by a number of political organisations in India and held in New Delhi 24-26 April 1982. Papers consist of an invitation to the conference; letter to Avtar Jouhl giving information about a seminar held in January 1982 at which is was decided to hold the conference; press release giving information about the participants at the national seminar and explaining the background to the conference; typescript article calling supporters to attend the national conference which provides a view of the current political situation in India

/22 anonymous typescript review article on the Richard Attenborough film 'Gandhi', 1982

/23 photocopy of a newspaper article published in 'India Weekly' 25 November 1982 on the Indian government's decision to deny Indians with foreign passports the right of ownership of agricultural land in India acquired after 1 January 1974, and opposition to this by the Indian Overseas Congress (UK)

/24 letter from Awtar Singh & Co, solicitors, to Harpal Brar and Avtar Singh on behalf of Councillor Gurcharan Singh regarding an article in 'Lalkar' in April 1983 entitled 'Victory in the Sikh Turban Case' which referred to him in insulting terms and also gave misleading information about his links with the Akali Dal Party (Talwandi Group). The letter requests an apology and an undertaking not to repeat the libel, 3 June 1983

/25 photocopied pages from Hansard consisting of a transcript of a debate in the House of Lords concerning the appeal against Lord Denning's ruling in the Court of Appeal that Sikhs were not a racial group, following the dispute over a Sikh schoolboy in Birmingham being prevented from wearing a turban. This debate probably took place in 1983, following the ruling

/26 handwritten statement by Avtar Jouhl confirming that Kewal Singh Dhaliwal as a member of the Amritsar Natak Kala Kendar, had performed plays during tours of the United Kingdom, and thanking the company on behalf of the Indian Workers Association for their help in creating cultural links between people in India and people of Indian origin living in Britain, 12 September 1983

/27 circular letter from the Indian Workers Association and signed by Harpal Brar, sent to major political parties and individuals in India and the Punjab; to the Indian national press and UK national press; to the major political parties and individuals in the UK; and to 'the fraternal press' concerning the disturbances in the Punjab and agitation by 'Akali' separatists, and setting out the views and policy of the Indian Workers Association on this issue 7 December 1983

/28 copy letter from Avtar Jouhl to the editor of the 'Sandwell Trader' in reply to an article published in the paper entitled 'Asians fear growth of terrorism' 30 December 1983, refuting suggestions that there is tension between the Sikh community and members of the Nirankaries group in Sandwell, 31 December 1983

/29 English translation of a warning to the Indian Workers Association from the Secret Sikh Freedom Fighters demanding that the organisation stop 'criticising the Sikh nation'

/30 photocopy of an unsigned open letter giving an account of an incident that took place at the residence of the Assistant High Commissioner of India in Birmingham during a meeting with members of the Indian community in the Midlands to celebrate the anniversary of Indian Independence Day at which a group of armed Sikhs belonging to various militant organisations attempted to disrupt the meeting. The account describes the inability of the police to deal with the situation and the effect of this on the Indian community

/31 statement issued by the Unity Centre of Communist Revolutionaries of India (Marxist-Leninist) (Nagi Reddy Group) on the assassination of Indira Gandhi in October 1984

/32 leaflet in English and Punjabi issued by the 'Anti '47 Front' commenting on the violence against Sikhs in India following the assassination of Indira Gandhi 31 October 1984 by Sikh bodyguards in apparent retaliation for the storming of the Golden Temple in Amritsar earlier in the year

/33 letter from Indian People's Front to the Indian Workers Association asking representatives to attend the 2nd National Conference of the organisations to be held 3-6 November 1984 in Calcutta

/34 note written in Punjabi, 18 November 1984

/35-/36 photocopy of an article by Uma Ram Nath on the history of class and ethnic struggles in the Punjab, printed in an unidentified publication, November 1984, and a copy letter from Avtar Jouhl, General Secretary of the Indian Workers Association to the editor of the 'New Statesman' responding to this article, 8 December 1984

/37 photocopy of a newspaper article on the challenges faced by Rajiv Gandhi, the Indian Prime Minister, in dealing with terrorist attacks in New Delhi which have been blamed on Sikh separatists, 15 May 1985

/38 newspaper article published in 'The Observer' reporting on the visit of an Ecuadorean mission to Britain and its apparent support for Sikh opponents of the Indian government

/39 photocopy of a newspaper article published in a newspaper called 'The Sun' 27 June 1985 reporting comments of the Punjabi poet Gursharan Singh on the support of Sikhs living outside India for an independent Sikh state of Khalistan

/40 photocopy of a statement in Punjabi issued by the State Organising Secretary of the Punjab Students Union about the national situation in India after the assassination of the Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi

/41 typescript report on workshop sessions on Reservation organised by the Bharatiya Shramik Sabha 6-7 November 1985 in New Delhi. Reservation was the process by which employment or educational opportunities were reserved for a under-represented group, based on a quota system

/42 photocopy of a newspaper article published in 'Indian Express' 25 May 1987 containing a feature on Bhagat Singh Bilga, secretary of the Desh Bhagat Yadgar Hall in Jalandhar. Also photocopied with this article is part of a letter addressed to 'Jaggi' which discusses violence by Khalistani extremists

/43 copy of Nanak Dham, 16 November 1987 which contains articles on the murder of Mahraz Darshan Das and one of his followers in Southall, London 11 November, as well as other news items about the recent activities of Sachkhand Nanak Dham

/44 photocopy of a flyer in Punjabi giving details about a memorial event to celebrate the life of the Punjabi poet Pash, 9 September 1989 at Summerfield Community Centre, Birmingham

/45 photocopied list of members of the Presidential Board; Secretaries; Treasurers; Public Relations Officers; and Committee Members of 'Virat Hindu Sammelan 1989'

/46 photocopy of a letter from Bhagat Singh Bilga, General Secretary of Desh Bhagat Yadgar Committee, Jalandhar, to the Minister for External Affairs, India, raising problems faced by Indian immigrants abroad relating to dual nationality and access to the Ghadhr Party memorial in San Francisco, 4 February 1990

/47 photocopy of a newspaper article published in 'Indian Express' 1 November 1991 reporting on please by the Indian Workers Association for the reform of the Indian law of citizenship to enable Indians in the UK to acquire dual nationality

/48 photocopies of newspaper articles dating from 1992 on the effects of pollution on the Taj Mahal, about government corruption in Pakistan following the rape of the daughter of a political leader, and about an appeal by the Supreme Court to the Union of India to compensate victims of the Bhopal gas disaster

/49 photocopy of a newspaper article published in 'Asian Times' 4 August 1992 reporting on proceedings of the Second Global Convention of People of Indian Origin in Paris

/50 anonymous notice to Muslims reproducing secret messages sent to Hindu members of Rasht Savac Sangh by the local leader, and published in Almadina Alislamia News 22 December 1992.

/51 letter from Gautam M. Appa, Lecturer in Ofunctional Research, London School of Economics, enclosing a faxed statement signed by members of an organisation of 'Non-Resident Indians for Secularism and Democracy' condemning outbreaks of communal violence in India . The letter also asks supporters to send donations to help victims of communal violence, 21 January 1993

/52 flyer issued by the South Asia Solidarity Group giving information about a Day of Action to oppose the [Bharatiya Janata Party] BJP's Delhi rally and stop 'Hindu fascist violence in India', 25 February 1993. The flyer gives an account of some of the political developments in India during the 1980s and includes information about the relationship between the British government and the Congress party during this period

/53 typescript report on the role of Communist groups in India during the state of Emergency Rule imposed by Indira Gandhi's government during the mid 1970s, compiled twenty years after the imposition in 1975

/54 photocopy of a newspaper article published in 'The Birmingham Post' 6 July 1995 reporting on the refusal of British immigration officials to allow Jagat Singh, to attend the funeral of his brother, British Sikh leader in Birmingham, Bhaisahib Norang Singh

/55 booklet entitled 'India: A Democracy on the Move', published to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Indian Independence, 1997

/56 photocopy of a letter to Avtar Jouhl from Prem Singh, President of Nri Sabha (Punjab), Jalandhar, inviting him to the 2nd Annual Conference of NRI Sabha 11 January 1998 at Guru Gobind Singh Stadium, Jalandhar

/57 undated appeal issued by the Baba Sohan Singh Bhakna Memorial Trust asking for donations towards the costs of establishing a building and a network of newspapers to further the work of the Trust in Chandigarh

/58 undated report on the work of Jana Vijyan Samiti, part of a 'People's Science Movement' in India working towards social change

The file also contains substantial papers in Punjabi and one document in Urdu. These consist of correspondence, flyers, newspaper reports largely date from the 1980s and concern the threat from Khalistani separatism and the violence in India following the assassination of Indira Gandhi. There is also material on communist politics and the activities and history of the Ghadar Party. Papers include a copy of the Punjabi magazine 'Navan Chanan' (New Light) dated March 1965 and a copy of the Punjabi magazine 'Charcha' July 1985