The Tribune – Poor governance eating into SAD-BJP alliance

Naveen S Garewal
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, June 29. Recent developments in Punjab point towards a serious political and administrative crises emerging in the state with certain elements within the SAD-BJP alliance exploiting their influence to ensure a breakdown of normal administrative functioning.

The government handling of one crisis after another is nothing but appalling. In what is seen as “murder of governance”, the Ludhiana Deputy Commissioner and the SSP have been publicly made to “regret the incident” (beating up of Ludhiana tehsildar Major (retd) GS Benipal) by SAD Revenue Minister Ajit Singh Kohar at Jalandhar yesterday.

No one would object to “seeking apology” if it follows an omission. But the manner in which the culprits of the incidents, close to the SAD leadership, continue to be shielded while the heads of civil and police administration were made to “apologise” directly or indirectly from their subordinates, speaks volumes of the ruling alliances political acumen.

The bureaucrats are totally demoralised and none want to take any kind of cudgels anymore. The government has drawn a lot of flak over the delay in giving a “go ahead” to the administration to book the dozen odd culprits, but it has drawn more public ire for “humiliating” its officers.

The manner in which the government failed to act swiftly and decisively after the Ludhiana incident and further let the perpetrators of the crime move around freely, simply suggests lack of will and ability to deal with such situations with an iron hand for political considerations.

Prior to the beating up of Tehsildar at Ludhiana, where the gentleman – an ex-serviceman was stripped to his underpants, Ludhiana’s Improvement Trust has been facing a clash between the executive officer and politicians from both SAD and the BJP. Punjab Vidhan Sabha’s Deputy Speaker Satpal Gosain and Chief Parliamentary Secretary Harish Rai Dhanda almost came to blows earlier this week over what these functionaries in the government call “corruption in the civic body”.

Again the manner in which Adampur legislator Sarabjit Singh Makkar misbehaved with Industries Minister Manoranjan Kalia over delay in clearing of files pertaining to his business interest speaks volumes for government functioning. It took the government almost a week to broker peace with the BJP.

Despite Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal’s assurance to deal firmly with rogue and criminal elements, there is a complete lack of political will to do so as these very people have been used by the SAD to brow beat its political opponents. This happened in Ludhiana and Talwandi Sabo during the Parliamentary poll and at several other places during the past few months. Brokering a negotiation with the striking revenue officials by “using” the civil and police chief of the district administration simply reflects the lack of vision to govern.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2009/20090630/punjab.htm#7

The Tribune – Cambridge scholarships for Sikh students

SGPC, Cambridge varsity to institute scholarships for Sikh students
Charu Chhibber
Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, June 29. The Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC) plans to institute scholarships in collaboration with the University of Cambridge (UK) for needy and meritorious Sikh students for research studies leading to MPhil and PhD degrees.

SGPC president Jathedar Avtar Singh said the SGPC had received a proposal from the Department of Human Resources, University of Cambridge (UK), in February this year regarding providing opportunities to Indian students from the Sikh community.

Michael O’ Sullivan Joseph, Director, Cambridge Commonwealth Trust, arrived in India a few days back to discuss the modalities for the creation of scholarships.

The Trust grants about 860 scholarships to Commonwealth students who are meritorious and fulfill the eligibility for admission to Cambridge varsity.

Joseph visited important institutions accompanied by the Director, Education, SGPC. He held a meeting with the SGPC chief in which the Director, Education and Principal of College of SGPC and Agya Paul Singh from Ludhiana participated.

The amount of scholarships will be shared as 50 per cent each between the SGPC and the Cambridge Commonwealth Trust. The scholarships will be granted through the SGPC-Cambridge University Education Foundation.

The University of Cambridge, which is celebrating its 800th anniversary this year, and has decided to open its doors to Guru Granth Sahib for the first time in whose presence an MoU will be signed in July, 2009.

Sikh students who will avail the scholarships for MPhil or PhD degrees will fill a five-year bond to serve at the appropriate level in various educational institutions of the SGPC. The SGPC on the one hand plans to build up its core faculty and on the other, needy and meritorious students will get an opportunity to study at the most prestigious university of the world which has produced approximately 75 Nobel laureates, informed the SGPC chief.

A four-member committee, comprising Vice-Chancellor, Guru Granth Sahib World University, Dr Jasbir Singh Ahluwalia, Director, Education, SGPC, GS Walia, chief coordinator Agya Paul Singh and Inderjeet Singh Seehra of Cambridge University, has been formed to finalise the modalities with the Cambridge Commonwealth Trust regarding the SGPC Cambridge Scholarship Programme.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2009/20090630/punjab.htm#6

Hounslow Singh Sabha – Excursion to the Chhattri monument in Brighton II

Rajinder Singh (Hounslow) & Harjinder Singh (Slough)

Rajinder Singh being interviewed

There were too many medalled men

What a wonderful outfit

More medals

A fine pipes player

MORE TO FOLLOW

Ramgarhia Sikh Gurdwara, Neville Road, East London

Ramgharia Sikh Gurdwara
10-14 Neville Road,
Forest Gate, London E7 9SQ

This is a picture I took quite a while ago, before this Gurdwara was even open. This new Gurdwara is near Upton Road.

The Ramgarhia Community Centre,
also on Neville Road, but nearer Green Street 

The Plashet Road side of the Gurdwara 

The Plashet Road entrance is to the left of the Nishan Sahib

 

A very different Palki !

 

377.The Man in Blue – The Arsonist GOI Agent

The Man in Blue in Black & White

During the weekend of 13 and 14 June the jathedar Akal Takhat visited Southall. Apart from an appearance in the Singh Sabha Gurdwara he also visited a private house in the area.

During that visit somebody from the Woolwich Ramgarhia Gurdwara told the jathedar about a person who calls himself ‘the Man in Blue’, who is involved in the arson attack on the Bow Sikh Sangat Gurdwara and who is an agent of the Government of India. 

Those that read my blog know that I did visit Woolwich and was ‘apprehended’ by the Prabandhaks while committing the horrible crime of taking pictures of the Gurdwara, was accused of being involved in the fire at the Sikh Sangat Gurdwara and was also told that I was not a Sikh but only dressed up as a one. When I tried to leave my exit was blocked.

The Prabandhaks phoned the police. When the police arrived I was very happy that I could leave the company of the committee members, but I was then searched under article 44 of the prevention of terrorism act.

Of course nothing was found that was even the least bit incriminating, but I think it is ridiculous that if you take pictures of a Gurdwara without the consent of the committee, the police think that this gives them the right to search you under the prevention of terrorism act.

I feel that I have an unresolved issue with the police, but have no wish to have an ongoing row with the Woolwich Gurdwara committee. They had me badly wrong, they made a mistake and they were told by Sikhs from East London that I was not a bogus Sikh and that everything I told them was true. 

I have no appetite for a dialogue of the deaf like : You are an arsonist – No I am not; You are an agent of the GOI – No I am not. I am far too busy doing positive things, which I hope contribute to the ‘Welfare for All’, and which will give a positive image of Sikhí.

A friend gave me the contact details of somebody on the Ramgarhia Board, a number of people have offered to support me, but at the end of the day if the Woolwich Ramgarhia Committee keeps slandering me I suppose I will take legal advice about suing them. 

I would certainly win, as the committee’s accusations are a completely nonsense. The only grounds for their suspicion are that I took pictures of the Gurdwara and that I did not like being accused of being involved in arson and being called a fake Sikh. In my thirteen years as an Amritdhari Sikh I have had some adventures with Prabandhaks, but never have I been treated with such malevolence.

For more info on my somewhat  dramatic visit to the Woolwich Ramgarhia Gurdwara click on the link below :

A Visit to the Woolwich Ramgarhia Sabha and Article 44 of the Terrorism Act

Hounslow Singh Sabha – Excursion to the Chhattri monument in Brighton I

On Sunday 14 June 2009 a group of Sikh World War II veterans and some other members of the Hounslow sangat went to Brighton to attend a commemoration of the contribution of soldiers of the British Indian Army to World War I and II.

During the first World War, from October 1914 till October 1915, The Meerut and Lahore Divisions of the British Indian Army were deployed in the North West of France and the South West of Belgium. Seriously injured soldiers were taken to Brighton Hospital and after treatment stayed in the Brighton Pavilion, which is build in a quasi Indian style.

Hindu and Sikh soldiers who passed away were cremated on a hill just outside Brighton, and this is where the Chhattri (umbrella) monument has been erected.  According to my dictionary the Panjabi word for umbrella or parasol is chhtr.      

As you will see on the pictures the weather was gorgeous !

In Brighton we joined with a group from Slough and enjoyed langar brought by them

 
Back to our bus !

Down the hill to the monument

The monument and the information panel

The Information Panel in English, Hindi & Panjabi

Full view of the monument
We were early, so it was still very quite

Taking a rest and a wonderful view across the hills

Gradually people come in and settle around the monument

Hounslow and Slough Veterans

MORE TO FOLLOW

 

 

Deras, Caste Conflicts and Recent Violence in Punjab – Surinder Singh

The underneath article was posted on Sikh News Discussion (yahoo group) by Livia Kaur liviakaur@yahoo.com on 14 June, 2009

The recent violence in Punjab has taken place as a repercussion of the shootings in a Ravidass temple in Vienna in which the Dera Sachkhand head, Saint Niranjan Dass, was injured and his second- in-command, Saint Ramanand, was killed. This hurt the feelings of the followers of the Dera all over world. The Doaba region in particular was in flames for almost two days before the situation came under control following the appeal by the sants of the Dera.

The present article is divided into three parts: the first part deals historically with the emergence of the Deras in Punjab; the second part deals with the role of these Deras in creating a consciousness among the lower-caste people in the region; and the third part deals with conflicts between the dominant Jat Sikh landed peasantry and the Deras‘ followers at different periods of times.
 
Emergence of Deras

Punjab has been witness to the emergence of a large number of Deras due to the continued social exclusion and pervading inequality in the social and economic order that refuses to go away despite the rise of Sikhism which in normative terms is opposed to caste based discrimination and glorifies manual labour. There has been another factor that explains the marginal position of the Dalits in the region and that is the concentration of land in the hands of a minority. Thus the ever increasing number of Deras all over the Doaba, Majha and Malwa regions of Punjab is widely attributed to the denial of a respectable place to the Dalits and Backward Caste people in religious places and the Sikh Panth. [Manak, 2007]

In Punjab, the number of Deras are not in hundreds but in thousands. A study conducted by the Desh Sewak, a Punjabi newspaper published from Chandigarh, gives figures that there are more than 9000 Sikh as well as non-Sikh Deras in the 12,000 villages of Punjab. [Ram, 2007, 4067; see also Tehna et al., 2007] There are about 300 major Deras across Punjab and the neighbouring State of Haryana, and these are popular in both States. Out of these a dozen have over one lakh devotees each. [Pubby et al., 2009].

There are some prominent Deras like Radha Soami (Beas), Sacha Sauda (Sirsa), Nirankaris, Namdharis, Divya Jyoti Jagran Sansthan (Nurmahal), Dera Sant Bhaniarawalla, Dera Sachkhand (Ballan), Dera Sant Phuriwala, Dera Baba Budha Dal, Dera Begowal, Nanaksarwale. Almost all of them have branches in every district of the State and even outside Punjab in the neighbouring States. Some of them have popularity among the Punjabi Diaspora. Though all these Deras have following among every caste, however, most of the followers of these Deras are Dalits and Backward Caste people who are often economically marginal also.

The history of the Deras in Punjab is older than the Sikh Panth. The Deras in Punjab before the Sikh Panth belong to the Muslim Peer and Yog Nath’s Dera. With the emergence of the Sikh Panth, some prominent Sikh and non-Sikh Deras came into existence as like Udasi Deras, Dera Baba Ram Thaman, Namdhari, Nanaksar. In the twentieth century most Deras came into existence, which are popular today, as Radha Soami, Sacha Sauda, Nirankari, Dera Sachkhand Ballan and Dera Bhaniarawalla.

Deras and Dalit Consciousness

These Deras have their egalitarian ideology, which is strictly followed by the devotees of these Deras. There is no place for caste or religion based discrimination. These Deras present simple but sharp elements of social protest in their teachings that have gone a long way in providing a basis for the rise of radical consciousness. [Ram, 2008, 1341] Some of these Deras have established their schools and health care centres. They encourage the lower-caste poor children to study and help them financially, so that they could earn their livelihood in a respectful way and help their community to lead a dignified life.

Dera Sachkhand Ballan, one of the most popular Ravidass Deras in Punjab, has played an important role in raising Dalit consciousness. The Ad Dharm movement of 1920 and Ravidass Deras played a historical role in the formation of Dalit consciousness in Punjab. The Ad Dharm movement has carved a separate religious identity for these lower-caste people. The movement projects Ravidass as their spiritual Guru, a sacred book Ad Parkash, their own separate ritual traditions; they salute each other in the name of Jai Guru Dev and respond with Dhan Guru Dev. In this way they create a separate religious identity. [Ram, 2004, 335-36]

These Ad Dharmi people have followers of the Dera Sachkhand Ballan. The Deras provide education and health care, which further strengthen the surging popularity of the Deras among the Dalits. One of the Dera’s Sant Sarwan Dass encouraged the Dalit children to study and helped them financially. He urged the poor people to educate their children so that they could earn their livelihood in a respectful way and help their families and community to lead a dignified life. Thus these schools are not only providing quality of education in a Dalit friendly environment but also act as an agency for generating Dalit consciousness. [Ram, 2008, 1342]

Since its beginning, the Ad Dharm movement led by Babu Mangoo Ram and the Ravidass Deras have been giving stress on having education and health. Education provides them both social consciousness and makes them financially well-off. Today the Ad Dharmis and followers of this Dera have been far more conscious and are also financially well-off as compared to other Dalit communities in Punjab. As a whole the Dalit community in Punjab and especially in the Doaba region has gained by acquiring non-agricultural occupation and also by going abroad in big numbers.

Deras and Caste Conflicts in Punjab

The recent violence that has taken place in Punjab has its genesis in the lopsided polity of Punjab and its closed nature of land-property relationship. The Dalits and backward classes in Punjab feel excluded from making the political and economic choices for the State as Jat Sikhs, constituting 20 per cent of the population, own 60 per cent of the land and control the politics and economy of Punjab. The recently awakened and economically empowered marginal classes have been moving out of the villages and even when they live in the villages they are increasingly taking on non-agricultural activities. One also finds separate Gurudwaras and community centres for the Dalits in the villages of Punjab. There has also been struggle over the common property resources (Shamlat Land) in rural Punjab where land is scarce. The newfound assertion of their identity and demand for political and economic space along with social respectability have often met with the violence by the dominant Jat Sikh peasantry. [Thakural, 2009]

Significantly the Dalits constitute almost one-third of the population of Punjab which is the highest in the country as a whole.
The recent attack on the two sants and their followers is also due to the fundamentalist Sikh organisations’ objection to treating the Dera Gurus at par with the ten Sikh Gurus and for keeping the Guru Granth Sahib along with the idols of Sant Ravidass.
The recent Dera conflict in Punjab is incidentally not a new phenomenon. Before this, many conflicts between the radical or fundamentalist Sikhs and Dera followers have taken place in Punjab. Mention can be made of the Sikh-Nirankari conflict (1978), Sikh-Bhaniarawalla follower’s conflict (2001), Sikh-Sacha Sauda followers conflict (2007).

Summing Up

The emergence of Deras all over Punjab is indicative of the assertion of the Dalits in the State trying to discover and consolidate their distinct identity to attain self-respect and also asking for their autonomous space in the social, economic and political life of the State. The recent conflict is yet another illustration, though an unfortunate one, of the community’s anguish over their historic denial in the land of the Sikh Gurus who vehemently opposed caste based discrimination, nay, rejected the caste system outright.

[The author is grateful to Dr Ronki Ram and Dr Ashutosh Kumar for reading the earlier drafts and giving valuable comments.]

References
Manak, Satnam Singh (2007): ‘Sikh Panth Ajoye Sankatt Da Sahmna Kiye Karye’, Rojana Ajit, May 22.
Tehna, Avtar Singh (2007): ‘Kyon Banday Hann Deras?’, Desh Sewak magazine, June 3.
Pubby, Vipin (2009): ‘Deciphering Deras’, The Indian Express, May 26.
Ram, Ronki (2008): ‘Ravidass Deras and Social Protest: Making Sense of Dalit Consciousness in Punjab’, Asian Studies, Vol. 67, November.
Ram, Ronki (2004): ‘Untouchability, Dalit Consciousness, and the Ad Dharm movement in Punjab’, Contribution to Indian Sociology, Sage Publication, New Delhi, September-December.
Ram, Ronki (2007): ‘Social Exclusion, Resistance and Deras’, Economic and Political Weekly, October 6.
Thakural, Gobind (2009): ‘Sikh Baicharye Anderly Takraw Da Mukh Karn Ke Ha?’, Rojana Ajit, Jalandhar, May 29.
Mishra, Vandita (2009): ‘Inside Dera Sachkhand’, The Indian Express, May 31.
The author is a Research Fellow, Department of Political Science, Panjab University, Chandigarh.

Link to original article :

http://www.mainstreamweekly.net/article1425.html

376.The Man in Blue – Modern Sikhs, Old Fashioned Sikhs

Harjinder Singh
Man in Blue

I have been reading about the history of Sikhs in the UK. All the books I read so far are weak in their sections on Sikhí, but it is fascinating to read about the individual Sikhs and Sikhs as a community who settled in the UK, and about how they became established in this country.

Some of these books divide us into ‘modern/reforming’ Sikhs and ‘old fashioned/orthodox/conservative’ Sikhs. I do not recognise any value in being either ‘modern’ or ‘old fashioned’. Something that was thought of thousands of years ago is not necessarily bad, something thought of yesterday is not necessarily good.

Our Gurus were reformers, and ‘orthodox’ Sikhs should all be reformers. Our Gurus were not conservatives and Sikhs should not be conservatives. The Gurus were on the side of the poor, the dalits and women. Many ‘modern’ Sikhs in the UK and Panjab are arch-conservatives and are not at all interested in people who are less well off, less powerful than them.

The teachings of the Guru Granth Sahib are progressive. The teachings of the Guru Granth Sahib are for everybody, regardless of their skin colour, gender, faith, nationality or whatever. Prejudice against people from other countries or from other Indian states, prejudice against those with darker skins, those from different caste or creeds just is not part of Sikhí.  

The umpteenth debate about wearing the 5 Ks is raging on the internet. In this debate there is always an undertone suggesting that people without the 5 Ks, and especially those without ‘unshorn’ hair are lesser human beings. This is not supported by Gurmat.

The Sikh way of life recognises the 5 Ks (and the turban) as powerful signs of the commitment to Guru’s teachings. The kirpan does not mean that we are a ‘martial race’, it powerfully represents the struggle against injustice, the defence of the oppressed. Today we should fight the xenophobia of the BNP and UKIP in the UK and the xenophobia of the Dal Khalsa in Panjab. 

When I was young long hair was ‘modern’, now short hair is ‘modern’. As a Sikh my long hair has nothing to do with being modern or old-fashioned. My long hair is linked with my serious attempts to stay on Guru’s path. But Guru will not judge me on the length of my hair or of my kacchera or on the size of my kirpan or my dastar. I hope that God will judge me on my serious efforts and not on my meagre achievements.

Let us be Sikhs who believe in One God and One Humanity, in Simran and Seva. Let us live the Sikh way of life, the way of Love. Let us live like Sikhs and look like Sikhs, let us be proud to be Sikhs, Singhs and Singhanís, who wear the Guru’s uniform, the 5 Ks and the dastar !

The BNP, UKIP and the Sikhs

Original

Als die Nazis die Kommunisten holten, habe ich geschwiegen; ich war ja kein Kommunist.
Als sie die Sozialdemokraten einsperrten, habe ich geschwiegen; ich war ja kein Sozialdemokrat.
Als sie die Gewerkschafter holten, habe ich nicht protestiert; ich war ja kein Gewerkschafter.
Als sie die Juden holten, habe ich geschwiegen; ich war ja kein Jude.
Als sie mich holten, gab es keinen mehr, der protestieren konnte.

Translation

When the Nazis came for the communists, I remained silent; I was not a communist.
Then they locked up the social democrats, I remained silent; I was not a social democrat.
Then they came for the trade unionists, I did not protest; I was not a trade unionist.
Then they came for the Jews, I did not speak out; I was not a Jew.
When they came for me, there was no one left to speak out for me.

Pastor Martin Niemöller
(1892–1984)

Some misguided Sikhs, like some of the SAS lot, are listening to the BNP telling us that we should join them in the fight against Islam.

 

Sikhs are not and have never been involved in a fight against Islam, just like Sikhs are not involved in a fight against Christianity or against any other religion.

 

Once the racists are finished with Islam they will turn against Sikhs, Hindus, Buddhists, Jains, Zoroastrians etc. 

 

The BNP likes to dress up at defenders of Christianity, but their policies against the ’strangers in our midst’ are of course against the teachings of Jesus.

 

Who is going to be out there, who will stand up against the racism and xenophobia of the BNP and of UKIP who are the middle class version of the BNP. Sikhs in India stood up against Indira Gandhi’s emergency. I will take a clear stand against any kind of racism, islamophobia, xenophobia. I hope that you, my fellow Sikhs, will join me and other Sikhs and people of all faiths and none to fight for the brotherhood of mankind.

 

Harjinder Singh
The Man in Blue   

 

Hounslow Singh Sabha’s excursion to Thetford and Elveden III

Picknick in the Thetford park 1

Picknick in the Thetford park 2

Picknick in the Thetford park 3

After the picknick, before the walk in the town

The Ancient House

Sadh Sangat on its way to the Ancient House

The Ancient House

A merchant built this house in 1490. The large amount of visible and carved woodwork was a sign of his wealth and status.

In 1921 the house was given to the town by Prince Frederick Duleep Singh (1868 – 1926) to be used as a museum.  

A last look at Maharaja Duleep Singh from across the river ‘Little Ouse’        

To follow : 
  Elveden     
Last instalment !