20 august 2024 : 1985, Sant Harchand Singh Longowal, president of the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), was assassinated by two assailants in Sherpur village in Sangrur. The killing dealt a cruel blow to the efforts to restore peace in the strife-torn state of Punjab. He was only 53 years old.
Longowal had just a month earlier, on July 24, 1985, signed a historic agreement termed the ‘Rajiv-Longowal Accord’ with then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi. The accord seemed to promise acceptance of major demands of the Sikhs, including the transfer of Chandigarh, rehabilitation of Sikh deserters from the Army, and compensation to victims of violence in Punjab and Delhi. However, most of these promises were never implemented.
Longowal’s role during the days of terrorism in Punjab and his political career have been discussed extensively in various books and articles about that sordid period. Some hailed him as the voice of moderation during those dark days. But others, including Akali leaders of the time, accused him of ‘double-play’, where he oscillated between Sikh hardliners like Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale and moderate Akali leaders like Parkash Singh Badal, as well as peaceniks, the Punjab government and the Centre.
The Central Government issued a postage stamp in his memory on August 20, 1987.
Born as Harchand Singh in Gidariani village in Sangrur (Patiala at that time) on January 2, 1932, he studied Sikh scriptures and learned religious music. The suffix ‘Longowal’ was attached to his name when he raised a Gurdwara in memory of an 18th-century Sikh scholar, Bhai Mani Singh, in the village of Longowal in Sangrur. He earned the title ‘Sant’ there.
His first foray into activism was in 1964 when he led a movement to save Sikh institutions in Paonta Sahib. In 1965, he was taken as a member of the Shiromani Akali Dal working committee and became a member of the Punjab Vidhan Sabha in 1969. His major fame came when he was part of the Akali movement against the Emergency imposed by Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. Longowal then launched a number of civil disobedience movements as president of the Shiromani Akali Dal 1980 onwards. He held several rounds of talks with Indira Gandhi, which did not lead to any fruition. This period also witnessed the rise of hardliner Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale and the Khalistan Movement.
Longowal was for a brief time said to be close to Bhindranwale, but they soon fell out. Longowal was among several Akali leaders rescued from the Golden Temple by the Army during Operation Bluestar in 1984.
Longowal continued his efforts for peace and eventually signed the Rajiv-Longowal Accord with Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi in July 1985. This agreement led to protests in Haryana and Punjab as other Akali leaders did not accept it. Amidst allegations and counter-allegations, two assailants, Jarnail Singh Halvara and Gyan Singh Leel, shot him at point-blank range near a Gurdwara in Sherpur.
The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) organises commemorative functions at Longowal on his birth and death anniversaries. Longowal never got married. His disciple Gobind Singh Longowal later became a prominent leader and an MLA with the SAD.
