The Panthic Committee members held a meeting and after discussion Bhai Wassan Singh Jaffarwal released the following statement:

The Panthic Committee is concerned with recent attempts by some sections Of the Sikhs to distort and malign the Sikh concept of freedom of expression Writers have been condemned by High Priests claiming to represent the authority of Sri Akal Takhti Sahib Recently protests have been organized in Delhi against international writers.

In the Sikh ideology and way of life there are no priests let alone any High Priests. In order to distort the Sikh Civilization attempts have been made since the time of British imperialism to divert the Sikh revolutionary ideology by attempting to convert i1to a theocratic religious movement first by encouraging the priestly mahants and later through the introduction of the 1925 Gurdwara Act by introducing High Priests at the Sri Akal Takht Sahib The Sri Akal Takhti Sahib is 9 political institution of the Sikh people and it is the Sikh people who left their political representatives to carry out the mandate and aspirations of the Sikh nation Theoretic pests neither exist in the Sikh way of life nor do they impose any authority or decisions or fatwas on the Sikh people OF ON Anybody else on behalf of the Sikhs

Our Guru Teg Bahadur lay down his life for the protection of the basic human right of freedom of expression and religious beliefs of humanity. Guru Teg Bahadur much before the philosopher Voltaire propounded the principle that l may not agree with what you say but 1am prepared (o lay down my life to protect your right to say it. The Sikhs are intellectually evolved and sufficiently mature to bear criticism against their ideology their beliefs and are able by reason and debate to defend and promote their beliefs and their progressive Way of life as they have done throughout their history

With our increasing consciousness of our national identity and our resolve to exercise our God-given right to self-determination the Indian ruling elite has mobilized all their resources to tarnish and distort Sikh ideology and (o physically eliminate Sikh resistance against the tyranny of the Indian State. Those sections of the media

This has the interest of maintaining the status quo of the elitist rule for domination and exploitation of the masses has attempted {o project the Sikh movement for liberation as separatist terrorist extremist militant and fundamentalist

The Panthic Committee wishes to clarify that the Sikh movement opposes attempts by the Indian rulers to forge a uniform and unitary State by destroying all the various nationalities that are trapped in the Indian State in order to legitimize their rule The Indian Union like the former Soviet Union and former Yugoslavia will be unable to hold on to its centralized power by its policies of cohesion manipulation and repression of its various nationalities. The Sikh movement is the vanguard movement in the region for the re-organization of power structures so that all nationalities in the Indian Union who are striving to flourish can exercise their right to self-rule This re-organization will eliminate repression exploitation division and Conflict and will help to create a Stable environment in the region where humanity can flourish develop and progress in peace. Ajit Singh Khera Press Secretary

Article extracted from this publication >> March 18, 1994