Separatist violence continues in the Punjab and nearby regions outside Punjab state. Gangs have kidnapped and held for ransom foreign company executives. Militants and robber gangs operate in the area in and around Jim Corbett National Park and Dudhwa National Park, as well as on roads leading to Hardwar, Rishikesh, Dehra Dun and Mussoorie. The most active and violent have been Sikh militants, who stepped up their attacks in 1997 on thickly populated targets, including transportation depots and marketplaces. The Sikhs are fighting for an independent homeland in Punjab, Khalistan (Land of the Pure). On July 8, 1997, 33 people were killed and 66 injured after a bomb exploded aboard a passenger train in southwestern Punjab state. Since 1984, when Prime Minister Indira Gandhi was blown away by her Sikh bodyguards, more than 25,000 people have been killed in the conflict in Punjab.
The cops, in their effort to put down the rebellion, have been as ruthless as the secessionists. More than 70 police officers have been charged with murdering alleged separatists.
Shiite Muslims have been raising havoc in Uttar Pradesh state, particularly since the June 1997 arrest of Shiite leader Maulana Kalbe Jawwad.
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