A travelling tale of 1984 Anti Sikh Riots in Delhi

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hT_kHydjfpg

The original sin of November 1984

Twenty-eight years ago in New Delhi, Kanpur and Bokaro, a murderous attack was launched against Indians of the Sikh faith by mobs organised and instigated by Congress politicians bent upon using the tragic assassination of Indira Gandhi as an occasion for political manipulation and gain.

Twenty-eight years ago in New Delhi, Kanpur and Bokaro, a murderous attack was launched against Indians of the Sikh faith by mobs organised and instigated by Congress politicians bent upon using the tragic assassination of Indira Gandhi as an occasion for political manipulation and gain. In the capital, the police stood mute witness to the killing of 2,733 Sikhs. That inaction and the failure to register cases or properly investigate those that were eventually filed are testimony to the official patronage the killings enjoyed. Rajiv Gandhi, who was Prime Minister at the time, made light of the pogrom, describing them as a reaction — “the earth always trembles when a big tree falls” — to the killing of his mother. Senior Congress leaders like H.K.L. Bhagat who were identified by survivors and eyewitnesses as instigators of the violence were rewarded with ministerial berths. A Commission of Inquiry headed by Justice Ranganath Mishra concluded, astonishingly, that the organised massacre was a spontaneous and “involuntary reaction” by ordinary citizens stricken by grief at Mrs Gandhi’s assassination. Subsequent commissions indicted the police for acts of commission and omission but the bitter reality is that the victims of the massacre are no closer to justice today than they were in 1984. 

The issue at stake is not simply a moral one. The fact that the politicians and police officers responsible for 1984 not only escaped indictment but actually prospered had grave implications for minorities elsewhere in India. The riot system perfected by the Congress on the streets of Delhi was unveiled again in Bombay in 1993 and, finally, by the Bharatiya Janata Party government of Gujarat in 2002. The parallels between 1984 and 2002 are striking. Like Rajiv Gandhi’s ‘Newtonian’ logic, Chief Minister Narendra Modi described the killing of innocent Muslims in his State as a spontaneous reaction to the burning of Hindu train passengers at Godhra. BJP and sangh parivar activists led the mobs in various places and were rewarded, like Maya Kodnani, with plum jobs. The Gujarat police used the same tactics as their Delhi counterparts to ensure the criminal investigation of major riot cases went nowhere. The big difference between now and then, of course, is the vigilance of the Supreme Court, which intervened when it became apparent that Mr. Modi’s government was not going to provide justice. Difficult though it seems, therefore, judicial intervention is needed even at this late stage to punish the guilty. In the absence of justice, the least the country can do is build a fitting monument in Delhi to honour the memory of the victims. The government may frown on such an act of remembrance but future generations of Indians must never forget there was a time the state looked away while innocent citizens were killed in the very Capital of the Republic simply because of their religion. 

with thanks : THE HINDU : LINK : for detailed news.

A travelling tale of anti-Sikh riots

A campaign to remind the government of its failure to punish the guilty

A travelling photo exhibition documenting the horrors of the 1984 anti-Sikh violence that erupted after the assassination of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi was on display at the Arts Faculty at Delhi University’s North Campus on Monday.

The exhibition comprising 80 photographs will, in the coming days, also be displayed at Jail Road, Patel Nagar, Kalkaji, Bangla Sahib Gurdwara and finally culminate at Jantar Mantar on November 3. It is part of a campaign to remind the Indian Government of its failure to punish the guilty and provide justice to the victims and survivors of the violence.

Some of the photographs show buildings set on fire at Connaught Place, Chandni Chowk and Trilokpuri. One photograph shows dogs feeding on a burnt human body. In another, the windows of former President Giani Zail Singh’s car are shattered.

In a photograph shot at INA Market, a mob is holding a Sikh man by his hair while some men are hurling stones at him. One photograph shows a mob at AIIMS crossing. Another one shot at the New Delhi Railway Station shows two bodies of Sikh men lying on a trolley-cart while people walk by staring at the corpses.

A number of affidavits submitted by widows of men murdered during the violence are also on display. Most of the photographs on display at the exhibition were shot by Ashok Vahie and Ram Rahman.

On Tuesday, the exhibition will travel to Jail Road and on Wednesday it will be on display at Patel Nagar near Satyam Cinemas and in the evening at Kalkaji B-Block. On November 1 and 2, the exhibition can be seen at Bangla Sahib Gurdwara. On November 3, a public demonstration and a candlelight vigil will be held at Jantar Mantar.

with thanks : THE HINDU : LINK : 

'Hate crime' attack on Sikh family home on wedding day

Police say they are treating an attack on the home of a Sikh family whose daughter was about to marry a man from a different religion as a hate crime.

The door of the terrace house in Coventry was damaged and its windows were smashed early on Saturday.

The family members, who asked not to be named, said they were targeted because a daughter was due to marry a Hindu man in a Sikh temple later that day.

The wedding later went ahead peacefully, as planned.

The family said they had been threatened in the weeks leading up to the wedding by some "hardline" Sikhs, who were unhappy about non-Sikhs getting married in one of the religion's temples, known as gurdwaras.

They said the people had also made aggressive calls to the gurdwara where the wedding was due to take place.

'Very frightening'

The father of the family told BBC Asian Network that at about 01:30 BST on Saturday he heard the glass in the house's front windows shatter.

He said: "It went 'bang, bang, bang'. It was very frightening."

The family were given a police escort to and from the gurdwara for the wedding.

with thanks : BBC News : LINK : for detailed news.

Awareness on DENGU : from net !

Awareness on DENGU : from net !

New York film festival to showcase Sikh culture

New York, Oct 26 (IANS) Sikh Art & Film Foundation's 9th AnnualInternational Film Festival to be held here Nov 2-3 will present 14 groundbreaking films sharing the culture, values, self-esteem and struggle of contemporary Sikhs.

The Sikh Heritage Award Gala Nov 2 will premiere a multi-million dollar public service announcement campaign called "Be Proud", created by Founder & CEO of RadiumOne, Gurbaksh Chahal and sponsored by SAFF.

The Be Proud campaign, created in the wake of the tragic Gurudwara shootings of six Sikh worshippers in Wisconsin in August, will begin airing nationwide in November, bringing its anti-hate, pro-unity message to Americans from all walks of life, SAFF said in a media release.

The campaign, which is backed by noted figures such as Deepak Chopra, Ben Kingsley, Lisa Ray, Jay Sean, and Gurinder Chadha, is about eliminating hate with the "unifying truth that we are all a little different and we should be proud of what makes us unique", according to Chahal.

Be Proud will also be recording videos at the gala that will be used on the Be Proud website, beproud.org.

with thanks : YAHOO NEWS : LINK : for detailed news.

SAD (D) seeks visa on arrival for Sikh pilgrims of both India and Pakistan

AMRITSAR: Shiromani Akal Dal (Delhi) has demanded from both Indian and Pakistan governments to issue visas on arrival to Sikh pilgrims of both nations. While talking to TOI on Monday, General Secretary of SAD (D) Harvinder Singh Sarna said that Sikh devotees of both nations had to pass through cumbersome formalities for getting visas to travel across the borders for paying obeisance at Gurdwara's. 

"We have written to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to take up the issue with his Pakistani counterparts so that Sikh's religious aspirations were fulfilled and they were not harassed in fulfilling their religious commitments" he said. Sarna informed that SAD(D) had also passed a resolution in party's meeting that calls for urging both governments to issue visas on arrival to Sikh pilgrims of both India and Pakistan. "A major mistake was committed during 1947 Indo Pak partition as there was no consideration made on the maintenance of around 175 historical Gurdwa's left back in Pakistan, we want to rectify that mistake, if Sikhs from India will get easy access to their Gurdwara's in Pakistan they will ensure that maryada (code of conduct) was implemented" he said. 

with thanks : TIMES OF INDIA : LINK : for detailed news.

Badals meet PM, oppose Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Act

Chief minister Parkash Singh Badal and deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal on Monday met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh seeking his intervention on the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Act issue. 

The two wanted the Prime Minister to advise the union home ministry to stop the Delhi government from amending the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Act, regarding direct election to the president of the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee.

The two called the move by the Delhi government as "ill conceived" and "politically motivated". "The interference of the government in the religious affairs of Sikhs could lead to serious conflicts," the chief minister told the Prime Minister. The chief minister impressed upon the Prime Minister to ask the Delhi government for immediate withdrawal of the proposed amendment.

Describing the amendment bill as "absurd", the chief minister said it violated the agreement reached between Jawaharlal Nehru and Master Tara Singh, which specifically talked about the commitment of the union government not to take any steps on Sikh affairs without consulting the Sikh community and representatives of Sikhs through the SGPC.

"This attempt on part of the government would lead to fresh suspicion, resentment and alienation in the minds of Sikhs, already recovering from the painful and discriminatory blows. In addition, it would also lead to unprecedented corruption in gurdwara affairs," Badal said.

with thanks : HINDUSTAN TIMES : LINK : for detailed news.

Preserve Sikhi atleast in the Sikh Community !

Giani Sant Singh Ji Maskeen