The World Sikh News was started in 1984 that was the year of trauma for Sikhs in India. Indira Gandhi’s government not only smashed the holiest of Sikh shrines, the Golden Temple in Amritsar, but launched a full scale aggression on the Sikh community, The game plan of the Indian Brahmanical ruling class was to perpetuate itself in power by frightening, blackmailing and appeasing the uppercases eventually to ensure their political consolidation. The Sikhs suffered immense losses in the process. The one great contribution the community made was to create a climate congenial to starting freedom movements all over India. As expected, the Indian response was to suppress the struggle of the Sikhs, Kashmiri and Assamese nations with the use of brute force. The most blatant violation of human rights occurred in India in recent years in the process. The whole world is now talking of these violations. The World Sikh News played no small role in making the public aware of what goes on in the so called largest democracy.
The World Sikh News has emerged as a champion of human rights not only of the Sikhs but also of all the oppressed nations, notably in India. As we approach 1 994, we ourselves continue to pursuing the struggle for human rights of the people for self-determination and human rights. A year ago, we had called for fresh efforts to strengthen the Sikh media in general and the World Sikh News in particular. We renew the call to all international Sikh institutions and wealthy Sikhs to help strengthen the World Sikh News by inserting their trade advertisements in the columns of this newspaper. At present, this paper is run by a band of professionals dedicated to the cause of Sikh self-determination and human rights. The World Sikh News is not the spokesman of any individual, group, or organization. It is not aligned with any particular section. Its columns are open to all individuals, groups or organizations. We seek to support the cause of Sikh self-determination and human rights irrespective of who leads these groups Or Organizations. We so not seek as a matter of policy to promote any individuals howsoever influential or acceptable. We are dedicated to the ideology rather than any individuals or organizations. The course of political events in India is confirming our assessment presented from time to time in these columns. India is not a democracy. The lesson of that country’s | polity is fascist. Hindus are not in a majority. India is a country of minorities who do not constitute a single nation. Until recently, Brahmans tried to create two-party system so that it was permanently dominated by Brahmans. But the recent elections in states delivered a body blow to that concept and catapulted to power (in U.P., the largest Indian State) a coalition of non-Brahmans namely of the Dalits, other backward castes, Muslims and Sikhs. The world will have to contend with this new trend to which we have been referring for years. As such, the World Sikh News has not only highlighted the all-important question of human rights but has also opened a window on the political perceptions and thinking of certain important sections of India’s population who together constitute a majority, of its population. The existing Indian media including its news agencies are presenting a narrow and partisan view of that country and tend to mislead the world. There is a two pronged censorship on India’s media: the Brahmanical state does it on one hand and the Brahmanical personnel on the media do it through self-censorship, on the other hand. The result is that the world is kept totally in dark about the real forces at ‘work in that country. The World Sikh News provides the view blacked out by the Indian media at present. While taking legitimate credit for its role, the World Sikh News at the same time rededicates itself to further strengthen and sharpen its contributions in 1994. We wish our readers a happy and prosperous 1994.
Article extracted from this publication >> December 24, 1993
