Sikhs killed as mobs roam New Delhi

Press, 2 November 1984, Page 1

Sikhs killed as mobs roam New Delhi

NZPA-Reuter New Delhi Crowds angered by the assassination of the Indian Prime Minister, Mrs Indira Gandhi, roamed the streets of New Delhi and other parts of India yesterday, attacking Sikhs, burning vehicles, and stoning shops. Two persons were killed and two wounded when Sikhs besieged in a. New Delhi temple opened fire on a crowd of several thousand trying to set the building alight, the Press Trust of India reported. Curfews were imposed in the cities of Indore, Patna, Kanpur, Agartala, Gwalior,

and Jabalpur. The Army was called in to restore order in New Delhi after widespread looting and violence. In India’s most populous city, Calcutta, the Army held a march through central streets in a show of force to head off similiar violence. Witnesses said Sikhs, who claimed responsibility for Wednesday’s assassination by Mrs Gandhi’s bodyguards, were mobbed and beaten.. Sikhs in the central New

Delhi temple, Gurdwara Rakabgunj, fired at least 20 rifle shots as the crowd massed within sight of the Indian Parliament. The shooting broke out after the crowd stopped vehicles and drained fuel tanks to make petrol bombs. About 10 fires' were started round the temple perimeter. About a mile from the temple, six Sikhs brandished swords on Janpath Street outside the Imperial Hotel; one of the capital’s land-

marks. The Sikhs were protecting their taxis which have been a main target for crowds. . Officials said 500 vehicles had been set alight. Banks, stock exchanges, commodity markets, and most business establishments in the ’ main Indian cities were closed yester- - day. ; The Reserve Bank of India was also closed, and a spokesman said that there would be no immediate announcement of exchange rate changes.

Reports of casualties were sketchy as the violence spread from area to area in New Delhi. The clashes broke out as hundreds of thousands of people gathered in New Delhi where Mrs Gandhi’s body lay in state at the former home of her father, Jawaharlal Nehru.

They burst through barricades and surged to within 10m of the open coffin in an effort to touch their fallen leader. '

Further reports, page 6