CHANDIGARH: The Akali Dal (M) president, Simarnjit Singh Mann, Monday declared that his party would contest the coming assembly elections in the state only under UN supervision and that too on the sole issue of an “independent, sovereign Sikh national state”.

Talking to reporters here, he said, “I have finally decided that I will not plunge my party into elections unless the five permanent members of the Security Council extend a guarantee that elections will be held and the UN promises to conduct the polls under its own supervision on the pattern of Cambodia, Namibia and Ethiopia.

Mann said that though he welcomed the move to unite all Akali factions, unity could be attained only if leaders of other factions, such as Parkash Singh Badal and Gurcharan Singh Tohra, were willing to adopt the goal of Khalistan.

He also said his party would not seek government protection in case it decided

to contest the elections

SPECIAL STATUS: He said that although Khalistan would be a secular, democratic republic, and not a theocratic state, the Sikhs would be guaranteed “special status”. Asked what this special status meant, he said “The Sikhs can be given the same status as you Hindus have in India”. He did not agree with reporters that he was a contradicting himself.

Asked whether the Indian Constitution had given Hindus a special status, he said “All the judges and Prime Ministers in the country have been Hindus.” He was not prepared to listen when reporters listed several prominent positions Sikhs had held in the country. Neither did he have any convincing answer when pointed out that while he spoke for Khalistan, his party activists had sought government weapons to protect him.

Asked for his reaction to Badals demand for a commonwealth of independent states, Mann observed that the former chief minister was “clouding the issue.

Mann declined to disclose the geographical boundaries of Khalistan saying that it was a “secret”. But he added that he would like Khalistan  to observe cordial and friendly relations with India. “India should be forthcoming on concede Khalistan gracefully”, he said.

Asked if Khalistan would not anger the interests of the 40 lakh Jat Sikhs living outside Punjab, Mann said “Sikhs who remain in India should continue to be respected, just as Hindus would be respected in Khalistan.”

He announced that 4 January would be observed as protest day against state He disclosed that he was in touch with leads as the JMM, the MNF, ULFA, the Bodes, and the LTTE to  fight Hindu  fundamentalism army and police repression state excess killing of Muslims and rape and killing of nuns. he claimed to be in touch with the LTTE supreme ,Prabakaran in this connection.

Article extracted from this publication >> January 10, 1992