Date 15 June 1991 Deaths 80-126 | Perpetrators Sikh militants | |
Target Passengers on the trains; primarily Hindus | ||
The 1991 Punjab killings was a massacre of train passengers that occurred on June 17, 1991 in Ludhiana district, Punjab state, India, where Sikh militants killed at least 80 to 126 passengers travelling in two trains near the city of Ludhiana, India.
Events
The militants stopped the two trains about a kilometre from Ludhiana station by pulling their emergency cords, triggering emergency brakes. They proceeded to open fire inside the trains, killing at least 80 passengers. Survivors stated that on one of the two trains Hindu passengers were singled-out to be shot. Attackers on this train apparently went through the train identifying Hindus and then went back to kill them, while sparing Sikhs. On the second train, the militants fired indiscriminately. After the attackers fled, the train moved back to Badduwal station, where the rescue team arrived with doctors. Local villagers helped the survivors with food, water, medicine, and mental support.
Later that year, in December 1991, militants killed 49 more passengers, mostly Hindu, travelling on train from Ludhiana to Ferozepur.