Dr Awatar Singh Sekhon,

Dr Gurcharan Singh Dhillon, Dr Harjinder Singh Dilger and Dr Harbakhash Singh Sandhar

TO BE CONTINUED ASSURANCES BY PATEL: By the end of July, 1945, the new Government of Britain decided to give independence to the Indian Subcontinent, This prompted the Hindu leadership to woo the Sikhs and divert the latter’s attention from the teal issues, Vallabh Bhai Patel speaking in August, 1945, at Poona said that the assurances given to the Sikhs in 1929 cannot be ignored, Master Tara Singh reacting to such statements warned the Sikhs to “beware of such deceiving statements of the Hindus is the latter had broken the above assurances in 193 (Round Table Conference), in the Cripps Mission proceedings, in opposition to the demand for ‘Azad Punjab.”

The Shiromanj Gurdwara Prabhandhak Committee (SGPC) and the Akali Dal demand Sikh country. On March 10, 1946, the SGPC passed a resolution demanding the formation of a sovereign Sikh State, Shiromani Akali Dal also passed a similar resolution on March 22, 1946. On March 15, Lord Attlee announced that minorities would not be conceded veto power. This statements as condemned by the Sikhs. A meeting of Sikh leaders was held on March 21, in the Chamber of the Lahore Assembly. The meeting, attended by Master Tara Singh and Baldev Singh along with others, demanded the formation of a Sikh State out of the a Punjab province. Gn April 1, the Central Akali Dal also demanded a Sikh State.

MORE ASSURANCES: On April 4, 1946, Master Tara Singh and Jinnah met it the residence of Sirdar Teja Singh Malik and discussed the situation, after a meeting of about 90 minutes, both leaders despaired ‘without arriving at a solution. The point of difference was that Master Tura Singh veered to accept union of the Sikhs and the Muslims (Pakistan) on condition that the Sikhs shall have a right to opt out of the “union” in case the continuation of the union became impossible. Prior to it,

  1. B. Patel (later the Home Minister of Indic) had promised, on April 3, that situation for the Sikhs in Pakistan after the transfer of power by the British. Sikhstan would be decided after independence Jinnah also offered a similar.

Article extracted from this publication >>  March 27, 1996