Beant Singh drew a .38 revolver and fired three shots into Indira Gandhi's abdomen; as she fell to the ground, Satwant Singh fired all 30 rounds from his Sten submachine gun into her abdomen. Both assassins subsequently dropped their weapons and surrendered.[7][8]
Beant Singh was immediately shot to death by other guards present. Satwant Singh was arrested and later sentenced to death by hanging along with co-conspirator Kehar Singh. In his court statement, Satwant Singh appealed for end to communal violence in the country, while pinning the blame for the same on Indira and Rajiv Gandhi. The execution was carried out on 6 January 1989.[9]
Aftermath
The assassination of Gandhi, marked the start of a 3 day riots against Sikhs perpretated across India in which 3,000 Sikhs were killed.[10]
The assassination of Gandhi brought their immediate families into the limelight,[11] resulting in their winning two Lok Sabha seats from state of Punjab.[12] The Lok Sabha is a directly elected 543 member house of the Parliament of India.
In the aftermath of the executions of Satwant Singh and Kehar Singh, communal violence occurred in Punjab, resulting in 14 Hindus being killed by militants.[13][14]
In 2003, a Bhog ceremony was held at the highest Sikh temporal seat in Akal Takht, located in the Golden Temple Complex in Amritsar, where tributes were paid to Indira Gandhi's assassins.[15]
In 2004, the anniversary of his death was again observed at Akal Takhat, Amritsar, where his mother was honored by the head priest and tributes were paid to Satwant Singh and Kehar Singh by various political parties.[16] In 2007, the death anniversaries of Satwant Singh and his wife were observed in various parts of Punjab and other countries. On 6 January 2008, the Akal Takht declared Beant Singh and Satwant Singh "martyrs of Sikhism",[15][17][18] while the SGPC also labeled them "martyrs of the Sikh nation".
The Sikh-centric political party in India, Shiromani Akali Dal, observed the death anniversary of Beant Singh and Satwant Singh as "martyrdom" for the first time on 31 October 2008.[19] Every 31 October since, this date has been observed at Sri Akal Takht Sahib.[20]
Singh's father was Tarlok Singh.[16] He married Surinder Kaur (daughter of Virsa Singh) on 2 May 1988 while he was in prison.[22] His fiancé wed him in absentia by "marrying" his photo in an Anand Karaj.[23][24]
References
^"Sri Akal Takht Sahib honours Bhai Satwant Singh and Bhai Kehar Singh". SinghStation. 6 January 2014. Subsequently, the Akal Takht and the SGPC, granted Beant Singh, Satwant Singh and Kehar Singh, the status of "quami shaheed" (martyrs of the community). Their portraits have also been displayed at the Sikh Museum inside the Golden Temple complex. Their relatives have been honoured at Akal Takht at every anniversary of their execution, for the last 24 years.
