On October 6, 1983 six Hindu passengers traveling from Amritsar to Delhi were killed by armed followers of Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale near Bhullar village in Dhilwan in Amritsar District. After the bus left Amritsar, two of the six militants who sat in the bus directed the driver to stop at an isolated area in the outskirts of Bhullar village. Six non-Sikh men were dragged out of the bus and shot dead with sten guns and revolvers. The militants returned and drove the bus for five kilometers and told the survivors to de-board before driving away with the bus.

The killing highlighted the deteriorating law and order situation, with state witnessing 75 insurgency related incidents in 1983 as compared to 13 in 1981 and 1982. This resulted in dismissal of Darbara Singh led state Government and the imposition of Presidents rule in the state from October 10, 1983 to September 29, 1985. The state was also declared a Disturbed area and Armed Forces Special Forces ACT (AFSPA) was implemented on October 15, 1983 and was in force till 1997.