Tuesday, June 26, 2012: Rightly or wrongly, Akalis are not known to contest serious allegations made against them individually or collectively in the Indian media. Sometimes attacks against the community too are ignored. Hence the mantle falls upon political parties and individuals to voice the other side of the picture to counter nasty imaginary fears about dissenting opinion in Punjab, dubbed as “extremist” by veteran commentator Kuldip Nayar in his article published in the columns of The Tribune on 18th June titled ‘Akalis owe an explanation to the nation’.
Whether the Akalis owe an explanation to the nation may be a bone of contention, but the learned author’s wild allegations are nothing but a bundle of insinuations and innuendo resting on the biased, bigotry thinking of the Punjabi lobby in Delhi, of which he is stalwart exponent.
It comes as no surprise to us that filing a clemency petition for Balwant Singh Rajoana before the President of India by Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal has been termed a “horrifying act”. Not only that, this it seems is “to the horror of the whole country”. Who and how was this measured is anybody’s guess. Can we ask why is the filing of a clemency plea for anyone wrong or unpatriotic and not a humane gesture? By the way, when Ms. Jayalalitha, the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu and the Tamil Nadu legislature passed a resolution on clemency for Perarivalan, Santhan and Murugan, no horror struck this country.
The construction of the memorial in memory of all those who laid down their lives countering the brutal assault of the Indian army in June 1984 has just begun, but for the seasoned journalist, “the insurgents have now founded a memorial for Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale...”
Not very surprisingly, he is now seeking scrapping of the Sikh Gurdwara Act and the SGPC born out of it. Let me humbly inform him that he has had the privilege of accepting an honour and a purse on 2nd July 2006 from this institution (read SGPC) which “mixes religion and politics”. If the gentleman is so upset, he should return the honour and I am sure the SGPC will gladly accept it, as they can easily see that they made a mistake in the past.
As regards who is to vote for the SGPC and who is to participate in Gurdwara affairs, everyone who is not a Sikh must stay away. Sikhs in their collective wisdom are competent and qualified to do so and do not need any outside advice. If the government of the day wants to accept the author’s advice and open a Pandora’s Box again, choice is theirs. The government must know that such attempts have been made in the past but have miserably failed.
The Darbar Sahib is the theo-political centre of the Sikhs and Sikhs of all hues and shades; not only militant and insurgents will go all out to protect its dignity and honour. Thousands of innocents killed within the Darbar Sahib precincts are a testimony to this. This Vatican of the Sikhs was not “polluted” with the blood of the martyrs, but purified and venerated. This Mecca of the Sikhs rejuvenated the spirit of the young Khalsa, leading them to lead the life of a true Sikh as enjoined by the Gurus.
By quoting Lt. Gen. (retd) Kuldip Brar who led the blasphemous attack on Darbar Sahib, insult has been added to injury. Neither this Kuldip nor the other can fathom the deep respect Sikhs have for martyrs for the cause of Sikhism.
All contentious issues which made the Punjab problem are still live issues, notwithstanding the three decade long service of Punjabis like him. Punjab is the only state of the country which shares a capital with another state, has this ever bothered Kuldip Nayar ji?
For once, he honestly writes, “I do not know why no Sikh organisation or a non-political person of consequence from the community has condemned the honouring of a killer and the laying of the foundation for a memorial.” Simply because every Sikh holds Darbar Sahib dear to his or her heart and will never forget the desecration of June 1984. The Darbar Sahib memorial will serve to remind them about the glorious martyrdom tradition of the Sikhs.
The Akali Dal, especially the Badals are the prime targets in Nayar’s piece. Akalis must respond. Shri Nayar wants to teach them religion and politics, secularism, constitutional working with a call to its ally BJP to throw the gauntlet and destabilise the present Punjab government. Whether they want to learn from him or teach him statecraft will be watched closely by the Dal Khalsa and the Damdami Taksal.
Since the last three decades and more, my community has been unable to read “between the lines” the mind and intentions of Kuldip Nayar and his ilk. It is time they must do.
(Writer is the Spokesman of Dal Khalsa and the opinion expressed here is his own)
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Playing with fire in Punjab - Akalis owe an explanation to the nation
Sukhbir’s explanation that the memorial was laid by the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) is not credible. The Akali Dal itself controls the SGPC. In fact, the Government of India should get at the root of the problem and scrap the Gurdwara Act. Let the entire Sikh community, not those who are on restrictive electoral rolls, run the gurdwaras. The problem with the Akali Dal is that it does not differentiate religion from politics. Bhindranwale committed the same mistake and Punjab paid the price. I do not know what the Akalis have in mind because they are traversing the same dangerous path. How embarrassed must have been Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, a Sikh and the new Chief of Army Staff, Gen Bikram Singh, also a Sikh, over what the ruling Akali Dal did to glorify the insurgents who polluted the Golden Temple, the Sikhs’ Vatican? The government had to employ the Army to destroy the barricades and the bunkers that Bhindranwale’s men had built to fight against the Army. How can a memorial be built to perpetuate those who wanted to disintegrate the country and give a bad name to the Sikhs who are proud citizens of India? Lt-Gen K.S. Brar, who led the force during Operation Bluestar, has spoken in pain about the operation. In an interview to a daily, he has said: “The Akalis are allowing a move to revive terrorism. Siropas are being offered to the kin of terrorists. Militants and their families are being garlanded. Are the Akalis attempting to get the sympathy of militants by allowing such activities?” Brar’s question should better be addressed to both the Chief Minister and his deputy who have not yet understood that they have to crush the divisive forces which believe in separatism. I do not know why no Sikh organisation or a non-political person of consequence from the community has condemned the honouring of a killer and the laying of the foundation. The Akalis are creating a Frankenstein which will one day devour the peaceful citizens of Punjab. The silence of the Bharatiya Janata Party surprises me. It is a partner in the state government. The BJP is either giving its tacit support to the radical fringe or sticking to ministerial postings for their personal gain. Both ways, they do not serve the interest of the party or the country. If they are really “unhappy”, as some reports say, they should quit the government. But then they too, like the Akalis, have electoral considerations in view. And the victory at municipal polls must have strengthened their decision to stay with the Akalis. Whether the Akalis realise it or not, there is a wave of indignation against what they have done at the Golden Temple. But the main anger is directed against the Badals who have gone along with those who had held the integrity of India to ransom. Both the Akali Dal and the Chief Minister owe an explanation to the nation. It would be, however, pertinent to know whether the Intelligence Bureau warned Punjab about what the radicals and insurgents were up to. Although Home Minister P. Chidambaram is pre-occupied, he should have pointed out in writing to the Punjab Chief Minister about the ramifications of what was contemplated at the Golden Temple. It amounts to the failure of the Constitution, and the state government should have been taken to task. The Punjabis are oblivious of why the Akalis are supporting groups like the Damdami Taksal and the Dal Khalsa, both known to be extremist organisations. On the one hand, the party is talking of development and requesting the centre for a special package and, on the other, it is endangering peace without which no development is possible. The Akalis should not forget the second innings the people have given them in the recent polls. The reason why they preferred it to the Congress was the promise of development which the Deputy Chief Minister made at every election meeting. People are so puzzled over the presence of the same person in the ceremony at the Golden Temple. His projection as the future CEO of the state is being doubted. How can he guarantee social harmony and development when he himself presented siropas? The Akalis are playing with fire which may push them to a point where they may feel the heat. The party has too much at stake. It cannot afford to fritter away the goodwill it created in its earlier innings. Faith in a pluralistic society is a commitment which cannot be diluted for placating the radicals. Secularism is not a fig leaf to be used by the Akalis for their wrong belief that religion and politics are two sides of the same coin. Even otherwise, the ideology of theology is archaic and outdated. Not long ago, it looked as if the Akalis were changing their outlook to imbibe progressive ideas and modern thoughts. The loss is that of the Akali Dal if it wants to cling on to gurdwara politics. The Punjabis will assess them and vote accordingly at the general election in 2014. (The Tribune 18 June, 2012). |
WHEN the Akalis are out of power, they indulge either in a dharam morcha or some act which would evoke religious passions among the Sikhs. But when they adopt the same tactics while in authority, it means that they want to divert attention from problems like unemployment, drug trafficking and farmers’ lessening incomes.
To the horror of the country, Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal filed the other day a mercy petition on behalf of Balwant Singh Rajoana, the killer of former chief minister Beant Singh. Now Badal’s son, Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh, is among those who have honoured the insurgents and a few others involved in resisting the Army which was deployed to flush them out from the Golden Temple at Amritsar. Both Badals are in charge of law and order. In a way, they are the custodians of the state. They have not realised even yet that they cannot carry out their duty if they side with militants.
I have been told they had to bow before “pressure”. If the rulers have to act under the direction of insurgents, the state is in for uncertain times. Punjab has been through the phase from the mid-’70s to mid-’80s when the extremists had the upper hand and instilled fear among the Hindus that they were not safe in the state. A hiatus between the two communities began to be visible from that time. The insurgents have now founded a memorial for Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale who, once sponsored by the Congress, challenged the state from within the precincts of the Golden Temple.