AHC: Separatist Secular Punjab movement

There is a separatist movement in Indian Punjab that wants a separate state for Sikhs, proponents want a country called "Khalistan", which means land of the pure in Indian Punjabi. However, could a secular independent Punjab movement ever arise? If so, how?

Doesn't have to succeed.
 

Ak-84

Banned
Pakistan is more deeply involved from the beginning. OTL, the ISI was very suspicious of the movement and only acquiesced under immense pressure from the Pak Secretariat (think PM's office).
 
Would such a movement have arisen in a situation in which, rather than creating the two states of our time line (India and Pakistan), the dissolution of the Indian Empire resulted in the formation of fifteen or so independent states, each of which corresponded to a major language?
 
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