CHANDIGARH: The Akali Dal (M) President Mr. Simranjit Singh Mann, has declared that he and his party would campaign “for the creation of a sovereign independent and separate Sikh nation, Khalistan,” in the event of a referendum conducted under the auspices of the United Nations,

“It is better to part (with India) peacefully through the ballots,” Mr. Mann said in an interview with The Times of India newspaper at his father’s residence.

With this declaration, Mr. Mann has aligned himself and his party with the ideology of the Sikh nationalists. Earlier, Mr. Mann had declared that the militants are the freedom fighters of the Sikh community and have an honored place in the party and in our minds and hearts. Thus political observers here say that Mr. Mann has now sought to come in direct confrontation with the authorities.

Mr. Mann’s declaration follows his party’s decision to boycott the assembly elections if and when they are held and to participate only in a referendum seeking the Sikhs right to self-determination held under UN auspices. Mr. Mann had first demanded such a plebiscite on April 13 during the Baisakhi mela at the historic Gurdwara Damdama Sahib in Talwandi Saboo in Bhatinda.

Mr. Mann announced that the committee constituted to hold unity talks with the Akali Dal leaders. “There is no point in holding unity talks when they (the Badal Akali Dal) are involved in parleys with the center. Mr. Mann disclosed that his party was in the process of drafting a formal letter to the United Nations requesting to hold a referendum in Punjab.

For the time being he intended to continue his long march through the state to educate the people about his stand. Therefore his party would undertake the task of ensuring that work on the controversial Sutlej Yamana link (SYL) canal was stopped.

He also said he intended to purge his party of undesirable elements around the end of next month.

Mr. Mann’s decision to purge his party is also influenced by the criticism of the panthic committee and four militants’ organisations which have accused several senior leaders of the Akali Dal (Mann) of Corruption.

Article extracted from this publication >> September 7, 1990