London: A British MP on Monday claimed that top secret documents suggested Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher`s government helped Indira Gandhi plan the storming of the Golden Temple in 1984 to flush out militants from the shrine, an operation that left more than 1,000 people dead.
Tom Watson, the Labour lawmaker from West Bromwich East, said the documents released under Britain`s 30-year rule included "papers from Mrs Thatcher authorising the SAS (Special Air Service) to collude with the Indian government on the planning on the raid of the Golden Temple".
The government apparently "held back" some more documents and "I don`t think that`s going to wash", he told BBC Asian Network.
"I think British Sikhs and all those concerned about human rights will want to know exactly the extent of Britain`s collusion with this period and this episode and will expect some answers from the Foreign Secretary," Watson said.
He wrote on his website that he would write to the Foreign Secretary and raise the issue in the House of Commons to get a "full explanation".
"But trying to hide what we did, not coming clean, I think would be a very grave error and I very much hope that the Foreign Secretary will...Reveal the documents that exist and give us an explanation to the House of Commons and to the country about the role of Britain at that very difficult time for Sikhism and Sikhs," he added.
On his website, Watson referred to documents that were made public by the organisation "Stop Deportations". The organisation said these documents were among a series of letters released at the New Year by the National Archives in London.
Five months after Operation Bluestar, Gandhi was assassinated by her Sikh bodyguards in retaliation for the raid on the Golden Temple.
