Chandigarh, November 4, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Senior BJP leader and former Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Wednesday said the wounds of the 1984 anti-Sikh massacre and Punjab’s drug addiction crisis could not heal without justice, as the party organised a day-long conclave titled ‘Zakhm 84 De’ in Chandigarh.
The event began with an ardas for the victims and their families. A photographic exhibition documenting the violence of November 1984, including burning homes, damaged establishments and displaced families, was also inaugurated by Prasad in the presence of state BJP chief Kewal Singh Dhillon and party in-charge Satish Poonia.
Addressing the gathering, Prasad said, “Two deep blots stain Punjab’s soul today: ’84 ke zakhm’ (the wounds of 1984) and ‘chitte di peeda’ (the agony of drug addiction). These wounds cannot heal without uncompromised justice.”
Targeting Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, Prasad questioned the party’s political events in Punjab and Delhi, referring to former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi’s November 19, 1984, remark: “When a big tree falls, the earth shakes”.
Prasad asked Rahul Gandhi to clarify his stand on the statement and questioned why he or his family had not offered an apology. He also claimed that he had ensured the restoration of video evidence of the remark to public archives while serving as Information and Broadcasting Minister in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government.
Accusing the Congress of delaying justice through successive commissions, Prasad said convictions in the cases came only after the Narendra Modi government constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) and acted on Justice Dhingra’s recommendations. He also acknowledged the legal efforts of senior advocate H.S. Phoolka.
Dhillon paid tribute to the families of victims and said the BJP would continue its pursuit of accountability. Targeting Rahul Gandhi over his rallies in Punjab, he said justice could not come from those responsible for inflicting the wounds.
Party national spokesperson R.P. Singh, who moderated the session, recalled the legal battle for justice and reiterated the BJP’s commitment to standing with the victims and their families.
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