Dr. Awatar Singh Sekhon

The foundation of the Sikh faith is based upon the Panth (commonly known as Khalsa Panth) and Granth. The latieris the source of spinitual guidance, in which teachings of the 10 masters, Guru Nanak Sahib to Gun Gobind Singh, and saints have been compiled. Both the Panth and Granth are not only sacred, but also dearest to Sikhs living in any comer of the world. No insult, harm or betrayal, distortion, can be tolerated nor excused. As far as the Sikhs are concerned, both the Panth and Granth govern the conduct, way of life, culture and polity of their community. Nothing is more dear to Sikhs than the respect and smooth function of the Khalsa panth as guided by the teachings of the Guru Granth. Since Aug.15,1947, deliberate attempts have been made to challenge the Khalsa panth and desecrate the Granth. These threats were re pulsed from time to time under the leadership of Master Tara Singh, his lieutenants, and devoted Sikh masses, using peaceful means, such as courting arrests and agitations against the accesses of the New Delhi administration of Jawaharlal Nehru and its sycophants.

The Nehru administration even wanted to destroy the integrity and sanctity of the Darbar Sahib Complex, including the Akal Takht Sahibin 1956, but could not do so because of the presence of a considerable number of Sikhs in the Indian armed forces. Thus other plans were hatched by the alleged democratically elected administrations of a predominantly Hindu India to systematically finish the Sikhs, using the internal and external threats. Internal threats include the penetration/infiltration of the Shiromani Gurdwara Prabhandhak Committee (SGPC; the Parliament of the Sikh nation) by pro New Delhi administrations; establishing up of special funds to destroy the leadership of Master Tara Singh of the Akali Party; commissioning imaginary photographs of the Sikh Gurus, betrayal of Sikhs from division of Punjab into Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh; using Sikh army units and Indian Air Force contingents against the people of Pakistan in three wars; dismemberment of Pakistan (Dilgeer HS and Sekhon AS, 1992. The Sikhs’ Struggle of Sovereignty, An Historical Perspective (Ed) A.T.Kerr, The Sikh Educational Trust, Box 60246, University of Alberta Postal Outlet, Edmonton, Alberta T6G 255, Canada); enforcement of Hindu laws on all ethnic minorities except Muslims; replacing Gurmukhi by Hindi and the Hindi nation of Gurmukhi; creating an imbalance between the Punjabi and Hindi languages by disowning Punjabi as their mother tongue by a majority of Hindus of Punjab; giving Punjab river waters (o other slates or provinces in India and controlling the water works of Punjab, denying the people of Punjab their ownership; preventing Punjab from becoming an industrial base; and denying Sikh youths jobs in civil and other areas.

All these factors have become a mild poison to the people of Punjab, spreading to cause their economical, cultural and physical genocide. According to a retired army general who was once travelling with his fellow colleagues in a train, an Indian public servant, belonging to a high class Brahmin community, travelling in the same railway compartment asked them why do you look so serious and gloomy. One of the Sikhs, fed up with the Indian administrations’ policies replied that our people have problems pertaining to river waters, economic and cultural developments. The Hindu civil servant replied that you do not know what your problems are, Sardar ji (gentlemen). We, the (your) masters of India want to introduce changes in the Granth which who cannot do because of stiff resistance from your community and above that, we, the Hindu masters of New Delhi, are highly frustrated with your prayer couplet which you sing every time in your Gurdwaras, “Raj karega Khalsa aaki rahe na koi.” It is puzzling for us how another raj could exist within a (Hindu) raj? As a matter of fact, we (the Hindus) want to swallow you, but we do not know how to do it.

Threats exist using the Brahminical, Chankiya or so called manu samriti (Hindu mythology; see Shergill GS 1993. Vibhachar da soma, brahminvadi samaj. SantSipahi 48 (7) :3335) on Sikhs, saying they are Hindus, but they do not want to remember that it was Guna Nanak who rejected the Hindu sacred thread, Janeu, in his childhood. Guru Gobind Singh said that Khalsa will enjoy my blessing as long as it does not surrender it’ sovereignty (Khalsa means sovereign) to Brah minor bipran) and must Keep away from the Brahminical nituals. Internal threats to the panth and Granth also include the leadership of Gurcharan Singh Tohra, Prakash Singh Badal, SurjitSingh Barnala (Charhdi Kala, 2128 July,1993), who virtually surren dered to Indira Gandhi on May 26,1984 and betrayed the Akal Takht (the Seat of Sikh polity) and the Khalsa Panth, Other names to include in the so called Sikh lead ership are Amrinder Singh of Patiala, Jagjit Singh Arora (who supported “Operation Black Thun der’), Baba Joginder Singh, Bhai Manjit Singh, Ragi Darshan Singh and those politicians who accept the Indian constitution and participate in Indian elections knowing that the Indian constitution does not have the endorsement of the Khalsa Panth. These socalled Sikh leaders have lost their integrity and do not enjoy the trust of Sikh masses as they chose to ig nore the teachings of the Granth, “Aapni partitaap hi khove, bahutr ooska biswas na hove, or Aisa kam mule na kiche jit aant pachhotaye, or Avar updesc aap na kare, aaval jaavat janme mare.” Of these Sikh leaders, Guroharan Singh Tohra, President of the SGPC, has failed badly to convey the interests of Khalsa Panthio the New Delhi masters. He poses himself as a bagger before the New Delhi administration forgetting that a Sikh does not beg bug gets his nights and never forgets his duties to the Khalsa Panth and Granth, Gurcharan Singh Tohra has also failed to put fonyard the claim to the New Delhi admintstration of Narsimhanrao to hand over the dead bodies of our martyrs like Bhai Sukhdey Singh Babbar, Baba Gurbachan Singh Manochahal,and TalwinderSingh Babbar. Similarly, Prakash Singh Badal and other leaders have to reassess theirrole towards serving Panth and Granth. They have to realize that they have only one master and that is the Granth or Akal Purakh. A Sikh offers his prayer to the Akal Purakh, standing before the Granth in the Presence of sangatto give him/her the energies to serve the panth and mankind. In contrast to G.S_Tohra, Prakash Singh Badal, Amrinder Singh, Sunjit Singh Bamala, Jasbir Singh Ahaluwalia, Jagdev Singh Jasoval, Bharpur Singh and Joginder Singh Salini (Charhdi Kala, 29July4 August,1993), Sani soldier Jarnail Singh Bhindranwaie, Gen. Shabeg Singh, Bhai Amrik Singh, more than 250,000 Sikhs were mercilessly tortured and killed in the Stale sponsored terrorism, Sardar Simranjit Singh Mann, thousands of freedom fighters and firm be lievers in the doctrine of Guru Gobind Singh, have been serving the community and raising their voice for the Granth and a sovereign Khalsa Panth. Threats also exist to the Khalsa Panth and Granth from (i) those turbaned journalists like Jagjit Singh Anand, Khushwant Singh, comrade Harkishen Singh Surjit and television show producer (Charhdi Kala, 29 July4 Aug.93), drama artists, cultural and sport teams, movie stars, human rights activists, keertinye jathe, ardasiye, the Sikh Babe or holy men, Sikh academics, businessmen; (ii) those who bow before the pictures of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, the so called Indian Mahatma (see World Sikh News, Aug.30,1991), Jawaharlal Nehru; (ili) those who turn a blind eye to the Sikh principle of Miri and Pin, and like to separate Miri and Pini of the Khalsa Panth; (iv) those who spread rumors about their martyrs, especially Sant Jarnail Singh Khalsa, Bhai ‘Sukhdev Singh Babbar, Bhai Gurbachan Singh Manochal; (v) those who try to prevent the sha ing of views with the guruki sangat in the presence of Granth in gurdwaras on the present state of the Khalsa Panth; (vi) those who do not shed any light on the Sikh history during keertan, (vii) those who bow before imaginary portraits of the Sikh Gurus, i.e., follow Hindu ritual of idol worship; (viii) those who bow before the Hindu’s Mata (mother) Sheran wali forgetting that a Sikh bows only to Guru Granth; and (ix) those who will talk big but are reluctant to discuss Punjab’s or the Indian administrations’ terrorism, atrocities, and oppression before the elected representatives of the countries they have been visiting. All these groups and people must re member the teaching of Guru Granth, “Avan Athetre Jan Satanve Hor Bhi Oothsi Marad Ka Chela, Sach Ki Bani Nanak Aakhe Sach Sunnaisi Sach Ki Bela (Tilang ‘Mahula 1, p723).”

There are threats to Khalsa Panth and Granth from those academics and writers who in the umbrella of research are spreading rumors about the authenticity of the writing of our gurus Mann and several other well-wishers of the panth and granth have exposed these writers or academics (World Sikh News, July 16,93). In order to destroy the very integrity of the Sikhs, their culture, language and assimilate them to Hinduism, the New Delhi administration has been using every possible mean to divide classless Sikhs to various classes, into various sects like Nirankaris, Dodra or Bunga sect of Mansa, lopoke group, Nanaksaria or Kalcranwale group, Ramgarhia group, Radha Swami group (Charhdi Kala, 29 July4 Aug.1993) to take it away from the SGPC and the Sikh Rahit Maryada (code of conduct of Khalsa Panth). The Indian administrations has even been using force against Sikhs but to no avail, Everyday Sikh youths are tortured and/or killed in staged encounters, our daughters and sisters are raped, and our elderly folks are humiliated by police, paramilitary, military and intelligence personnel at the direction of the New Delhi administration. Yet, the proopaganda machinery of the morally and ethically bankrupt India boasts both at home and abroad, through their utopians and diplomatic missions, that everything is fine, If everything is fine, then why does the Indian government not send all military and other forces (more than $00,000 in number) out of the Sikh nation? Congress rule, backed by armed personnel, is an indicator that the New Delhi administration has lost faith in its civil servants and secularism. It is now realized that India, with its draconian powers, is no longer a democratic and secular country, As such, the Sikhs must realize that Khalsa Panth and Granth are under grave threats from Hindu fundamentalists and the terrorist regime of India. Sikh academics and those who believe in humanity, dignity, and self-esteem must take appropriate measures to save themselves and others from catastrophe, India has already threat ¢ned Pakistan with its fourth military adventure, but the United ‘States’ timely response has averted military involvement on the Jammu Kashmir and Punjab borders. However, the potential danger persists in that hostility be tween Pakistan and an irresponsible, foolish Indian military might may Start at anytime, possibly resulting in a 20th century nuclear holocaust, in which Khalsa Panth and innocent Muslims of Kashmir will have to bear the thrust of terrorist like Indian Brahmins who comprise only 5% of the 880 million of Indian population, but have captured 67% of administrative posts. These Brahmins have been described as: Mathe Tika Terh Dhotti Kakhai, Hath Chhuri Jagat Kasai (Guru Granth Sahib, p.471 472).

It will not be inappropriate for peace loving, democratic countries of the world to disarm the: immoral armed forces of terrorist India and hold free elections or palettes under the supervision of United Nations representatives in order to determine precisely what the Sikhs, Muslims, Christens, Dalits, Tamils, and other non-Hindu and non-Brahmins want. Until that time, the Khalsa Panth and Granth will remain under danger, the likes of which have not been paralleled since the days of Hitler and Nazi Germany.

Article extracted from this publication >>  September 3, 1993