Sikh Gurudwara Attacked in Australia

Victoria, Australia (CHAKRA) - After a hate crime against a gurudwara in the state of Victoria in Australia, the Sikh community has appealed for security, fearing that further attacks will take place against the minority community in the area. Sikhs from Shepparton, Northern Victoria have appealed to the assailants, that their place of worship be left alone.

A local Sikh, Kuldeep Singh said that he thinks the vandalism could have partly been done due to racism but he does not know or understand why anyone would want to put the Sikh community to harm.

After various incidents of vandalism at the Gurudwara in addition to a car smashing into the fence surrounding it, security has been upgraded to surveil the area. The Sikh community is both surprised and hurt by these acts of vandalism and hope that their pleas for peace will not go unnoticed and ignored completely by other nearby dwellers.

Singh said that the Sikh community is hard working and very good to others around them. He further stated that his community’s belief in God should not be a reason for such consequences.

On another note, a Sikh boy, in Grade 11, attending a Christian school in Melbourne, was forced to shave off his beard if he wanted to continue attending the school, according to Harkirat Singh, a member of the Sikh Federation of Australia. The Indian community surrounding the school is outraged and greatly upset with the mockery of a symbol of the Sikh religion. They accused the school and board of institutionalized religious discrimination.

Over the last few years, in Australia, more than 100 incidents including those of hatred and racism have occurred. Various organizations have formed such as the National Council of Indian Australians, in response to the hate crimes. These groups hope to come together to raise awareness of the Indian religions so that incidents of such a nature disappear altogether.

with thanks : ChakraNews : link above.

Watch NDTV 24x7 : A programme on Communal Violence Bill

Watch NDTV 24x7 :

A programme on "Communal violence Bill " : 

Sunday 10th July at 8 pm.  

Pics : Gurdwara Data Bandi Chor Sahib, Gwalior : Happy Gurupurab !

ਛੇਵੀ ਪਾਤਿਸ਼ਾਹੀ ਮੀਰੀ ਪੀਰੀ ਦੇ ਮਾਲਿਕ, ਅਕਾਲ ਤਖਤ ਦੇ ਰਚਨਹਾਰ ਗੁਰੂ ਹਰਿ ਗੋਬਿੰਦ ਸਾਹਿਬ ਦੇ ਪ੍ਰਕਾਸ਼ ਪੁਰਬ ਦੀ ਲੱਖ ਲੱਖ ਵਧਾਈ।

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Gurudwara Taran Taran Sahib

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Bliss at Tarn Taran

The golden ripe wheat was swaying gently in the breeze. Emerging out of a side lane on the highway was a Sikh in a yellow turban, walking with a typical martial demeanour. 

On his arm he wore the kara or bracelet and in his holster was a kirpan. Handsome, I thought; and warrior-like. "Khalsa," said my driver, almost in an undertone. Khalsa? Who are they? 

"They are the most strict, pure, and aggressive of the Sikhs. You will see many of them in this region," my driver informed me. I followed the sweep of his arm to see more Khalsas bobbing past on bicycles, others driving tractors piled high with the day's harvest, school girls with pigtails running in dusty lanes, and every now and then a village straight out of Khuswant Singh's Train to Pakistan. Yes, that's where I was heading: GurudwaraTarn Taran Sahib, close to India's border with Pakistan. 

Also known as Sri Darbar Sahib Tarn Taran, the shrine was built at the behest of the fifth SikhGuru Arjan Dev in the late 16th century. In 1590, Guru Arjan Dev "set out on a tour of the country between the rivers Ravi and Beas." He chose a spot, bought the land and laid the foundation of a gurudwara in honour of Guru Ram Das. He also got a sarovar or water tank built there and called it Tarn Taran. 

We entered the town of Tarn Taran to a typical Indian marketplace: Vegetable vendors jostling for space, snarling traffic and cows frozen in time like Nandi sculptures. As we drove through the archway, the music changed — Punjabi pop gave way to the slow, lilting tunes of shabad kirtans. Our car suddenly took a sharp turn and stopped. Right in front of us was a lane decorated with streamers; on one side were shops selling books and music, beads, karas and items used in worship while on the other was the wrought iron fence of the gurudwara. 

Tarn Taran Sahib looked so different than other gurudwaras that the first thing I did was to seek more information from Mohan Singh, a retired block education officer who was doing kar seva or service at the entrance. 

Slowly stroking his silver beard, Mohan Singh said, "This is not the place of any one guru. In Sikhism, we have had 10 gurus, but each of them was only reiterating the word of God in the Guru Granth Sahib — so this is the house of the Guru Granth Sahib." 

Why do people come here? 

"They come here because their wishes get fulfilled and ailments get cured," Mohan Singh said. The vast expanse of the sarovar is striking; especially if you compare it with the Golden Temple in Amritsar. The white marble walkway that surrounds the sarovar is over a kilometre long. Sikh websites describe the sarovar as "the largest Sikh sarovar in the world." 

with thanks : Times of India : link above for detailed news story.

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Hotel to apologise over turban eviction

A BRISBANE hotel that evicted a patron for wearing a turban is now attempting to locate him to apologise.

Spirit Hotels, which is a Coles subsidiary, has confirmed to AAP one of its staff members at the Royal English Hotel at Nundah asked a man to remove his turban under their no headwear policy yesterday.

After the Sikh man refused, he was evicted.

A spokesman for Spirit Hotels said the decision to ask him to remove his turban was an oversight.

"Our hotels have a policy where patrons may be asked to remove headwear to help the venue manage security for staff and patrons," the spokesman said.

"However, in this particular incident, the patron should not have been asked to remove his turban, and we are attempting to contact the patron to apologise.

"Hotel staff are being educated again on correct application of the policy."

with thanks : heraldsun : link above for detailed news.

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DSGMC seeks commuting of Prof. Bhullar's death sentence.

Watch NDTV 24x7 : A programme on Communal violence Bill

Watch NDTV 24x7 : 

A programme on Communal violence Bill : 

Tomorrow 8 pm.  

( Date n Time to be reconfirmed ).

DSGMC seeks commuting of Bhullar''s death sentence

New Delhi, Jul 2 (PTI) The Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (DSGMC) today sought clemency for terrorist on death row Devinder Pal Singh Bhullar in view of sentiments of Sikhs. DSGMC president Paramjit Singh Sarna said Sikhs the world over "were hurt" over death sentence to Bhullar and sought that his death sentence be commuted to life imprisonment. Two memorandums on the demand would be submitted to the President and Home minister soon, he said. Sarna said while Sikhs in Vancouver, Canada had got together to protest the rejection of Bhullar's mercy petition, a delegation of Canadian sikhs led by led Baljinder Singh Khaira was here to present a memorandum to the President, asking for commuting Bhullar's death sentence to life imprisonment. 

with thanks : IBNlive : link above for detailed news.

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Sikh Community in Lucknow held city's first ever Career Guidance Camp for Youth

IOSS Lucknow chapter and Young Sikh Leaders Mumbai organized a seminar on career counseling for sikh boys and girls on 19.06.2011 at Gurdwara Sri Guru Singh Sabha, Chandernagar, Alambagh Lucknow. 47 students who secured more than 80% marks in their X and XII Boards' Examinations in 2011 were felicitated during the seminar.

This successful event was a joint effort of S. Jagjeet Singh -President Institute of Sikh Studies,Lucknow ;Dr.(Capt)Manmeet Kaur Vice President,IOSS,Lucknow;S.Jaswant Singh joint Secy IOSS,Lucknow and Jagjeet Singh ,Treasurer IOSS, Lucknow.




With Thanks :Young Sikh Leaders

Anti-Sikh Riots: Nath denies inciting violence

Urban development minister Kamal Nath has rejected allegations of his involvement in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots in a US court, and claimed diplomatic immunity in the case. "I expressly reject the allegations contained in the Affidavit of Service (of Yoselin Genao)," he told a New York court in an affidavit this week. Nath said that he never received court summons informing him of the complaint filed against him in connection with 1984 anti-Sikh Riots. The complaint against him stated that the, "The defendant was seen and heard by many on the scene of Gurudwara Rakab Ganj. In this particular incident defendant was leading and in control of a mob of about four thousand people."Nath has repeatedly denied any involvement and has been cleared by the Nanavati Inquiry Commission, which described the minister's testimony as "vague" but concluded that there was no evidence that he had incited a mob.

He said that he never received summons at the Indian consulate where the plaintiff's say he was handed summons.

with thanks : Hindustan Times : link above for detailed news.

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