Pipli villagers recall bloodshed during forced sterilisation drive

Even after five decades, the villagers of Pipli in Kharkhoda subdivision of Sonepat district remember the Emergency of 1975 not as a political moment, but as a nightmare of violence and trauma that unfolded in their fields, homes and hearts.

“Even today, people have not forgotten the terror of that time. Police and officials gheraoed the village and it was the youth and women who stood up and resisted them,” said Mehtab Singh (68), former sarpanch of the village.

Located on the Kharkhoda-Delhi road, Pipli was among the worst-affected villages in Haryana during the Emergency, especially during the forcible sterilisation campaign led by Sanjay Gandhi.

“Back then, Pipli was a small village. Officials chose it deliberately, thinking its size and location would make it easier to control — and to escape if needed,” recalled Mehtab Singh.

“There were no toilets in homes. People went to the fields early in the morning. The BDO, a Sikh officer from Punjab, laid a trap and caught men as they stepped out for nature’s call.” Mehtab was just 18 years old at the time.

“My father, Kehar Singh, a former sarpanch, was also picked up for sterilisation. When the villagers got word, the women and youth took up lathis and started opposing the police and officials,” he said.

Despite the odds, Pipli resisted fiercely. “The Emergency had given them unchecked power. But the villagers didn’t back down. There was a violent clash. Several villagers and police were injured and a policeman was killed by the angry mob,” he said.

Another resident, Ramdhan, said the sterilisation drive was carried out without consent or verification.

“The officials were desperate to meet their targets. They didn’t even check whether a person was eligible. People were assaulted, women were beaten with canes and the police opened fire,” he said. “Two people, including a woman, were killed.”

As the situation worsened, hundreds of villagers from nearby villages and districts poured into Pipli to support the resistance.

“They camped here for over a month,” said Mehtab. “Many villagers went into hiding in the fields. Bharat Singh, grandfather of BJP MLA Pawan Kharkhoda, brought food for us — tubs of chapatis on a tractor-trailer —every day.”

“Now things are different. The village has developed and has all basic facilities,” said current sarpanch Satbir, noting how far Pipli has come from those dark days.