New Delhi: The decision for a quick commando action instead of a siege of Golden Temple in Amritsar to flush out Sikh terrorists was taken by the Generals in command at the "eleventh hour" about which Indira Gandhi was "taken aback" but went along with the "professional judgement" of the Army commanders.

This is contained in the just-released autobiography of P C Alexander, who was principal secretary to the then Prime Minister Gandhi and later to her successor son Rajiv Gandhi.

The initial plan as briefed by then Army Chief General A S Vaidya was an "effective siege" of the buildings involving cutting off telephones, electricity, water, food and inflow of men and weapons, says Alexander in the book "Through the corridors of power" published by Harper Collins, India.

However, four days after briefing Gandhi, Gen Vaidya got back to her and said that it was the "considered opinion" of the Generals commanding the operations that while the siege could work for the smaller Gurudwaras (where extremists had stocked arms and ammunition) it could not work in the case of Golden Temple.

Gandhi, writes Alexander, was "taken aback," but she "respected their professional judgement" and did not interfere with those in command of the field operations.

She expressed concerns on how the commando action would be conducted, what if the terrorists offered stiff resistance, if there could be damage to the temple and whether such an action could have any adverse effects on the loyalty and discipline of Sikh jawans in the Indian Army.