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Baku Initiative Group and Sikh Federation International call for global action for Anti-Sikh violence

16 January 2026 18:24 (UTC +04:00)

The Baku Initiative Group and Sikh Federation International have called for Global Action for Anti-Sikh Violence, APA reports.

The call reads:

"We, the participants of the international conference entitled “Racism and Violence Against Sikhs and Other Minorities in India: The Reality on the Ground", extend our sincere appreciation to the Baku Initiative Group (BIG) for convening this important gathering and for providing a platform to address the violation of the Sikhs rights in India. BIG’s commitment to elevating the voices of neocolonial-affected nations is critical, and we commend their leadership in bringing global attention to these urgent concerns.

We further acknowledge the significance of this forum in uniting diverse international stakeholders committed to justice. We call on the global community to address the ongoing impunity against Sikhs in India, including surrounding the 1984 anti-Sikh massacres in India. Thousands of Sikhs were killed in Delhi alone, thousands were injured, homes and businesses were destroyed, and women and girls were subjected to widespread sexual violence. Despite ten official commissions and countless civil society investigations revealing patterns of organized attacks, political orchestration, and police complicity, accountability has been almost nonexistent. No senior political figure or police official has faced justice. Hundreds of cases were deliberately closed without investigation, evidences were destroyed or manipulated, witnesses were threatened, and many perpetrators were promoted to higher political office.

Civil society documentation — including the work of the People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL), the People’s Union for Democratic Rights (PUDR), Ensaaf (a US-based human rights organization dedicated to documenting abuses against Sikhs), as well as independent journalists shows that mobs acted systematically and in coordination with Congress Party leaders and with the tolerance, and often participation, of the police. Reports describe police refusing to register First Information Reports (FIRs), filing vague omnibus complaints, downgrading murder charges, and even preventing Sikhs from defending themselves by confiscating their kirpans. Testimonies also reveal horrific accounts of gang rapes, abductions, and killings of women and girls, most of which were never investigated. The state’s own commissions—Misra, Nanavati, Kapoor-Mittal, Jain-Banerjee, Poti-Rosha—identified serious failures, but their findings were repeatedly ignored, blocked, or neutralized.

This impunity is not limited to 1984. The systemic inability and unwillingness of authorities to prosecute violence against Sikhs has created a cycle of repetition and normalized state tolerance for mass atrocities. Meanwhile, Sikh activists’ voices face increasing repression. Peaceful advocacy for human rights, or Khalistan is routinely labelled “extremism,” enabling arbitrary arrests and transnational pressure on diaspora communities. Broad counter-terrorism laws are used to silence dissent, while victims of past atrocities continue to fight simply to have their cases heard.

In this context, we call upon the international community to pursue a just path forward by supporting time-bound investigations into all closed and mishandled 1984 cases; prosecute political leaders and police officials responsible for planning, enabling, or covering up the violence; ensure justice and reparations for survivors of sexual assault; create credible witness protection mechanisms; and enact a strong law against communal violence that makes state officials accountable for failure to prevent or stop attacks. We additionally call for transparent reporting mechanisms, international technical assistance where appropriate, and regular public updates on progress toward accountability.

We call on the international community to acknowledge the gravity of the neocolonial anti-Sikh policy of the İndia Government and raise these issues consistently in bilateral and multilateral dialogues with India, and protect Sikh human rights defenders facing intimidation. International institutions should assist with documentation, preservation of evidence, and truth-telling initiatives to safeguard historical memory. Justice delayed has become justice denied. The continued absence of accountability for century-long persecutions deepens the suffering of survivors and increases the likelihood of renewed violence.

The Baku Initiative Group and Sikh Federation International urge governments, civil society, and global institutions to stand with Sikhs."