Lakhnaur Sahib fast: Gurbaksh Singh Khalsa's second hunger strike for the Bandi Singhs

Who: Bhai Gurbaksh Singh Khalsa; the Punjab BJP, then the Akali Dal's coalition partner, with its spokesperson R.P. Singh Maini; the Punjab Government and the Akali Dal; and BJP president Amit Shah.

What: Khalsa began his second fast on 14 November 2014 at Gurdwara Lakhnaur Sahib, Ambala district, Haryana, for seven Sikh prisoners who, by his account, had finished their sentences. The Tribune said the SGPC had refused him permission to protest at any gurdwara in Punjab, and that he had met the Akal Takht Jathedar eight times in ten months. He had ended his first fast, at Mohali the year before, after a promise about the prisoners, The Tribune reported. On 19 November, five days in, the Punjab BJP extended full support, and Maini met him at the gurdwara.

The Punjab Government's answer, reported by The Tribune on 11 January 2015, was that none of the seven were convicts in the state. DGP Sumedh Singh Saini said only two people on the SGPC's list of 120 had completed their minimum sentence, and cited the Supreme Court ruling of 9 July 2014 that no state government could release a convict early. The Akali Dal released its own list of 13 prisoners for whom it wanted the Centre's intervention, and all seven on Khalsa's list were on it. The Tribune's report of 11 January 2015 names two of the seven, Devinderpal Singh Bhullar and Gurmeet Singh. BJP president Amit Shah contended that those connected with "terrorism" cannot be freed (The Tribune).

Wikipedia, citing The Times of India, says Haryana police stopped Khalsa on 8 January 2015, his 56th day, from going to the Akal Takht in Amritsar. On 10 January he was moved to Ambala Civil Hospital after his health seriously deteriorated. Doctors advised moving him to PGIMS Chandigarh or Rohtak for feeding through a drip, and on 15 January his family persuaded him to end the fast. His son Jhujhar Singh gave him a glass of juice at about 7.30 pm, with Ambala Deputy Commissioner M.S. Brar, DCP Surinder Pal and members of the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee present. He went home to Thaska Ali. The Tribune's report of the ending mentions no release.

Where: Gurdwara Lakhnaur Sahib, Ambala district, Haryana; Ambala Civil Hospital.

Why it mattered: The fast ran 63 days counting both dates, 64 by Wikipedia's count, and no release was reported. The next day Bapu Surat Singh Khalsa began a fast of his own. Khalsa died on 20 March 2018 at his village after climbing a water tank during a protest; the police said he jumped (The Tribune).