This is the front page of The Indian Express published on September 2, 1984, Forty Years Ago.
The movement of all vehicles to and from Amritsar was suspended for two days while preventive arrests of Akali Dal activists and SGPC members rose to 1,250. Bus services to Amritsar from all over the state have been suspended. The entire Gurudwara Shaheedan, the venue of the world Sikh convention, has been cordoned off by troops and mounted police, blocking each entry. Despite all these restrictions, most of the SGPC and Akali leaders succeeded in sneaking into the gurudwara.
Toppling Hedge
The Congress (I) has initiated its first major move for wresting power in Karnataka by giving an important role to the former chief minister, Gundu Rao, in bringing about unity in the state party. Rao was the central figure in a series of talks in New Delhi on Karnataka affairs. The Kerala Chief Minister K Karunakaran, who has been assigned the task of toppling the Hedge government in Karnataka, was present at the discussions.
AP satyagraha
The opposition parties including the CPI, CPI-M and the BJP gave an ultimatum to the Andhra Pradesh Governor S D Sharma to convene within 48 hours, an emergency session of the state assembly and reinstate the N T Rama Rao Ministry or face the Bharat Bandh that they have decided to observe if the demand is not met. The decision was taken at an Opposition meet where they also decided to launch a countrywide satyagraha from September 5 if their demands were not met.
Olympics And Asylum
Gurtej Singh, a 24-year-old member of the Indian Olympic track and field team to the Los Angeles Olympics and the Indian record-holder for the javelin throw said in Washington that he had decided to seek political asylum in the US because of events in Punjab. Officials at the immigration and naturalisation service declined to comment on his application.
