Saturday, September 24, 2011

Sunday is “Turban Day” for Europe’s Sikhs















Thousands of Sikhs will gather across Europe Sunday to proclaim their right to wear their faith’s required turbans — and to voice concerns with legal challenges to such headgear in some parts of Europe.

The turban or dastaar is mandatory for devout Sikh men. They are not allowed to remove it even to wear safety headgear such as motorcycle helmets.

Thousands of turban-wearing Sikhs are expected to gather in European capitals in a simultaneous gathering organized by the Sikh Channel, a Europe-wide TV Station on the SKY platform.

Live broadcast on the Sikh Channel the Turban Awareness Gatherings will take place from Madrid, London, Rome and Brussels.

Sikhs in Italy have complained of difficulties at some Italian airports of being asked to remove their turbans, with many Sikhs refusing to do so and, as a result, missing their flights. Some Italian provinces require Sikhs to remove Turbans for driving licence photographs. Thus, a number of Sikhs have not applied for driving licenses to avoid what they consider the humiliation of being photographed without their turbans.

The British gathering is expected to occur at noon outside of the Houses of Parliament. In Rome, Sikhs will gather at the Piazza Montecitorion.

with thanks  beliefnet : link above.



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Friday, September 23, 2011

Extract: The Punjab Bloodied Partitioned and Cleansed

















extracts : 

‘The first batch of raiders arrived around the village in the evening of 6 March. There was no warning, although we had heard that trouble had started in Rawalpindi a day or two earlier. The first attack on the village was from behind, from the north and not the road in the south. Initially only a few hundred took part in the assault but soon others joined them. Their numbers continued to swell all the time. They were beating drums and shouting Allah ho Akbar. Some were on horses but most were on foot. Our elders took positions on the rooftops, giving the impression that we were well-armed, whereas in fact we had only three double-barrelled shotguns and almost no ammunition. The early attacks were mostly cases of brick-throwing which continued sporadically until the 12th when several thousand men encircled Thamali. In the meantime, efforts were afoot to reach some agreement that would terminate the hostilities. On the 12th, finally, an agreement was reached. My father, Subedar Diwan Pal Singh, had retired only six months before the riots. He and retired Superintendent of Police Bal Mukand, a Brahmin, represented our side. The Muslims had Subedar Lal Khan and some other notables representing them. The agreement was that if we surrendered our weapons they would escort us safely to village Pharawan from where we would be able to take the road to Poonch in Kashmir. During the negotiations, the raiders realised that we were poorly armed. So, against all moral and religious principles, the same evening a massive attack took place. Bal Mukand and some other Brahmins had already left for Lal Khan’s village under a secret understanding. One Brahmin, Jagan Nath, was killed because he had a rifle and the Muslims had seen him firing at them. About 10-12 Sikhs from our village had gone to village Kaloha and were saved. ‘The Sikhs decided not to surrender. Some of them even went out and fought in the fields, but it was clear that we were fighting a lost battle. The women were taken to the gurdwara. They brought along their valuable possessions. Then a fire was lit. It had been decided that we will not let the Muslims touch our womenfolk. My grandmother, mother and one of my sisters died in that fire. My brother’s wife, her father, and her infant son and her daughter were also burnt to death.


with thanks : please read  more at :

SikhsIndia

Sikh leader threatened in Lahore














LAHORE - The business of a prominent Pakistani Sikh leader has been attacked by unidentified people several times over the past six months, and now the miscreants have even threatened him against speaking about the issue, according to newspaper reports.

Former Pakistan Sikh Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee President Sardar Bishon Singh, who has always been quite vocal against the government’s ‘injustices’ with the Sikh community, has been selling imported cloth in shops across Lahore since he moved from the tribal areas in 1993.

“I have been threatened with dire consequences if I do not stay silent over issues,” Singh said. 



“They have threatened me with death and financial loss.”


He said cloth worth Rs 7 million was looted from his shop in Azam Cloth Market. Another one of his shops, located in Zeenat Tower on the Model Town Link Road, was shut down by the building’s owners.

Earlier this month, the owners cut the power supply to his shop and constructed another shop, blocking the way to his shop. “According to the tower’s map, there is no space on which the new shop can be constructed, so I have approached the court where I obtained a stay order. But when I tried to stop the construction, owners threw me outside the tower and closed my shop.”

His attempts to reach out to the police did not bear any fruit. 

“Instead of hearing my complaint, police began inquiring if I belonged to India or Pakistan,” Singh said. “I tried to approach Malik Owais, Superintendent Police (SP) Model Town, but he said he had no time to entertain Sikhs as he had to deal with more pressing issues.”



“I then approached Zahid Aslam Gondal, the deputy secretary for law and order at the [Punjab] Chief Minister Secretariat, but I was not treated well. [Punjab] Governor Latif Khosa has now asked me to come see him,” he said.


with thanks : link above

Sukhbir Badal expresses gratitude to Sikh community for reposing faith in SAD


CHANDIGARH:  The Shiromani Akali Dal President and Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal today said he had been deeply moved by the trust reposed by the Khalsa Panth in the programs and policies of the Shiromani Akali Dal in the just concluded SGPC elections. He thanked the Sikh sangat for the overwhelming mandate in favour of the SAD, the Sant Samaj and allies.

In a statement, Badal reiterated his and his party’s resolve to work day and night to justify people’s trust and will uphold the values that Gurbani teaches us.   Mr. Badal said he had been surprised by the unwarranted hue and cry raised by the parties rejected by the Panth in the poll and said “ I hope they show more grace and dignity in true Sikh traditions and accept the verdict of the Sikh sangat in all humility.    There is no place for arrogance in the face of collective will of the Khalsa Panth”.  

The SAD President pointed out it was not only in Punjab alone, where the SAD-BJP were in government but also in Haryana the Khalsa Panth had placed its faith in the SAD and had thwarted those who were out to divide the community.  "It is for the Congress sponsored Panthic Morcha to explain why our opponents met the same fate even in the Congress-ruled Haryana where the SAD won eight out of 11 seats.  In fact, their plight in Haryana is even more pitiable as the main leaders of the Panthic Morcha, Jhinda and Nalvi, lost with humiliating margins.

Badal also felicitated the leaders and workers of SAD for this superb victory and stated the crushing defeat of the anti-panthic forces especially the Panthic morcha in these elections was a pointer towards its complete isolation and rejection of their immoral acts to capture SGPC. 

with thanks : link above in the head line.

Press release : SAD - Delhi UK


Role in 1984 anti-Sikh riots: US court reserves order in case against Kamal Nath

JALANDHAR: A US federal court on Wednesday reserved its order in the case filed against Union minister Kamal Nath over his alleged role in leading a mob during anti-Sikh riots in November 1984 in Delhi.

Judge Robert W Sweet of the US federal court for the southern district of New York heard arguments in the case.

According to Sikhs For Justice (SFJ) attorney Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, who is pursuing the petition, Nath failed to produce "statement of interest" from US department of state in support of his claim for diplomatic immunity.

After hearing the arguments from both sides, lasting over 45 minutes, Judge Sweet reserved his ruling.

The plaintiffs requested the court to issue a default judgment against Nath for failing to respond within 21 days after receiving the summons on April 6, 2010. SFJ has already demanded a "jury trial" during which plaintiffs would submit documentary evidence proving participation of Nath and other leaders of Congress in November 1984 Sikh genocide.

In the arguments on Wednesday, plaintiffs emphasized that despite having knowledge about the case and openly acknowledging the receipt of summons and complaint, Nath did not respond within 21 days as required by the law. In fact, Nath completely ignored the summons till August 2010 when plaintiffs moved for entry of default judgment against him, the plaintiff's counsel argued in the court. 





with thanks : times of india : link above for detailed news.

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Citizen charter on Janpath, Delhi Aaj Tak : B S Vohra


Please view the video :


Guru Nanak Dev Ji

Headstart for SAD but real war ahead

Politics is all about timing and momentum. That's why the ruling Shiromani Akali Dal has a reason to gloat over its resounding victory in the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) elections. Barely five months short of the high-stake Punjab Assembly elections due in February, the party, in an alliance with the Sant Samaj, romped home on 157 of the 170 seats up for grabs, re-asserting its time-old hold on the apex Sikh religious body.
In Sikh politico-religious affairs, the SGPC, with an annual budget of Rs 600 crore, represents a veritable powerhouse with enormous sway on the Sikh masses. Clearly, Sunday's triumph has buoyed SAD's morale, galvanised its grassroots workers and geared up the party machinery for the bigger battle ahead for the Vidhan Sabha. That's all that will count for the SGPC election outcome's impact on Punjab's political landscape in the next few months.
But, to interpret the SGPC win as a referendum on the SAD-BJP government's performance, as upbeat Akali leaders are tempted to do, will be a measure of their capacity for self-delusion. Nor does the buoyant forecast of Badals' spin doctors on the "historic verdict" as "a semifinal" to the assembly poll slugfest hold much water.
After all, the SGPC electorate - about 55 lakh and spread over Punjab and parts of Haryana and Himachal Pradesh - is limited to the Sikh constituency of only 'keshdharis' (those with unshorn hair). In other words, only one-tenth of Punjab voters eligible for the Assembly elections exercised their franchise for the SGPC polls. More importantly, the SAD was the only mainstream political party to contest the polls while Punjab's other key political players namely the Congress, BJP and Manpreet Singh Badal's People's Party of Punjab were out of the fray -albeit directly.
Also, the SAD's feat has lost some its sheen because of brazen intimidation and misuse of power by its workers. As if political acrimony and mudslinging that marred the high-decibel campaign was not sacrilegious enough, large-scale, in-your-face violations of the Gurdwara Act, coupled with violence, struck a jarring note to the elections so ineptly conducted by chief gurdwara commissioner Justice HS Brar (retd), who chose to look the other way despite a flurry of brazen violations exposed by the media. That perhaps was Brar's way of returning the favour to the Badal Government for appointing his daughter as a top law officer in Punjab advocate general office.
The reason why the SAD pitched its stakes so high is obvious. In factionalised Sikh politics, the Akali Dal that lords over the SGPC is reckoned as the real Akali Dal, while others merely "Khaali Dal (empty party)".
An astute campaign organiser, SAD president and deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal pulled out all stops not only to re-assert his party's long-held supremacy on religious turf, his carefully-crafted strategy had three near-term objectives, too: to buff up his own image as an election-winner, to fire up the Akali rank and file, and to make a headstart in the Assembly elections. And, his strategy has seemingly clicked.

with thanks : HT : link above for detailed news

SikhsIndia

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

DSGMC Press conference on 20.9.11 on Sikh affairs by Sd. Paramjit singh Sarna




SikhsIndia

Surrey man appears on 'Regis and Kelly' with world's longest beard

Surrey Sikh priest Sarwan Singh appeared on the Regis and Kelly show in New York on Tuesday to show millions of television viewers his beard. At eight feet two and a half inches long, his is believed to be the longest beard in the world.

Singh serves as high priest of Guru Nanak temple in Newton. He also teaches music at Surrey's Akal Academy.
I am very proud to have been given the opportunity to represent the Sikh and Surrey communities," Singh said of his guest appearance on the show.

He was speaking through his translator and friend Dr. Pargat Bhurji, a Surrey pediatrician who accompanied him to New York.

Bhurji is also the principal and president of Akal Academy.

"This is history in the making," Bhurji said. "Out of the 6.5 billion people in the world, he is the only one standing there."

Sikhs must not cut their hair as an article of their faith and Singh, 45, has been growing his beard since he was 15 years old. He has held the Guinness World Book record for longest beard since 2008.


with thanks : link above for detailed news.

SikhsIndia