Dear Editor,
It was painful and brought tears to my eyes when I looked at the picture ‘of the martyr in the World Sikh News of February 28, 1996. It was not the gruesome death of Baba Monochahal which caused me grief because I am fully aware that death is the ultimate fate of every mortal and it is a boon for a martyr. My anguish was caused by the shameless smiles of the morally ‘depraved bounty hunters in Sikh garbs, ‘This reminds me of the bounty hunters of the eighteenth century like Karma Chena, Rama Randhawa, Sahib Rai Sandhu and others who played a major role in the extermination of thousands of innocent Sikh men, women and children during one ‘of the most tyrannical period of Sikh history. While turning over the pages of the newspaper I saw a beautiful poem by Harbhajan Singh dedicated 10 the martyr. This poem describes very vividly the feelings of any conscientious human being whosoever looks at this graphic picture, Please allow me to say something more about the moral decay which has spread deeper roots in the Sikh community.
While a vast majority of the Sikhs who are decent are in a deep slumber due to the hypnotic influence of mayajal, the wicked ones are busy chiseling away at the foundations of the Sikh faith and culture, Brothers and sisters wake up, look around and see what is happening to your community. Our Political and religious institutions are dominated by unethical and spineless people and unscrupulous and half-witted scholars have taken over the educational institutions. Look at the SGCP and the Akali party. Their foundations were Laid with the blood of martyrs who sacrificed so much during the struggle to liberate Gurdwaras from the morally depraved Mahants . The Gurdwara liberation movement is one of the golden chapters in Sikh history. It not only up lifted the community morally but also put a twinkle of pride in the eyes of every Sikh. It is such a shame that the current SGCP is dominated by so-called Jathedars who are remnants from the dark ages. The violent and legal fights for the control of Gurdwaras overseas has famished the image of Sikhs in the eyes of other communities. The so-called Sikhs who carry out these nefarious acts fall into three categories: 1) professional criminals, 2) hired thugs who work for agencies who are inimical to the Sikh faith and 3) mentally deranged.
It is the moral duty of every sane Sikh to fight the evil in our ranks, We must have the courage to expose the criminals and charlatans present amongst us. That is the only way to extricate ourselves from the moral decay which has taten deep roots in our ranks.
Baldey Singh Collegeville, PA
Article extracted from this publication >> March 27, 1996
