A British special forces expert advised the Indian government on how to remove Sikh militants from the Golden temple in Amritsar, Punjab, in India in 1984.

The shocking news is sure to have repercussions from India to the U.K. to North America.

The revelation came about as a result of secret correspondence that has just been released from the British national archives.

A top secret letter, dated February 23, 1984, by Principal Private Secretary to the British Foreign Secretary BJP Fall, states, “The Indian authorities recently sought British advice over a plan to remove Sikh extremists from the Golden Temple in Amritsar. The Foreign Office decided to respond favourably to the Indian request and, with the Prime Minister’s agreement, an SAD (SAS) officer has visited India and drawn up a plan which has been approved by Mrs Gandhi. The Foreign Secretary believes that the Indian Government may put the plan into operation shortly.”

The letter adds: “An operation by the Indian authorities at the Golden Temple could, in the first instance, exacerbate the communal tension in the Punjab. It might also, therefore, increase tension in the Indian community here, particularly if knowledge of the SAS involvement were to become public. We have impressed upon the Indians the need for security; and knowledge of the SAS officer’s visit and of his plan has been tightly held both in India and in London.”

A letter dated February 3, 1984, to Fall by then-Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher’s Principal Private Secretary, FER Butler, states: “The Prime Minister is content that the Foreign Secretary should proceed as he proposes. She will look forward to receiving a report on the adviser’s visit and notes that the Home secretary would be informed if the Indians seemed likely to proceed with their plans.”

Some other documents have been reportedly withheld.