Perneet Singh, Tribune News Service
Amritsar, May 7. Even as the SGPC and the Damdami Taksal are preparing to begin work on Operation Bluestar Memorial from May 20, the debate on the shape and design of the memorial has gained momentum. A majority feels that it should be different from a gurdwara.
Sikh scholar Bhai Ashok Singh Bagrian said the memorial should be simple. “It should ideally be in the form of an 84-ft ‘khanda’ having five corners,” he said, adding that he was against building a gurdwara as a memorial. “The memorial will be for the people, both Sikhs and non-Sikhs, and hence, should not be designed as a gurdwara,” he said.
He added that the memorial should not be located within the precincts of the Golden Temple Complex for the same reason.
Radical Sikh outfit Dal Khalsa leader Kanwar Pal Singh said the memorial should be in consonance with the importance of Operation Bluestar. Besides, there should be a gallery where photographs along with the names of “martyrs” are displayed, he added.
All India Sikh Students Federation (AISSF) chief Karnail Singh Peermohammed said the memorial should be a befitting tribute to “martyrs”. He felt that it should not be in the form a gurdwara. “It should be built in such a way that people can distinguish it from other structures,” he added.
However, DSGMC chief Paramjit Singh Sarna said Guru Granth Sahib’s “bir” must be installed inside the memorial. He said it should preferably be in the form of a gurdwara.
SGPC Chief Avtar Singh Makkar said: “Its shape and design will be finalised once architects submit their report to the SGPC,” he said.
The report is likely to be submitted on May 9.
Dal Khalsa objects to SGPC move
Objecting to the resolution adopted by the SGPC to install a portrait of the former chief of Budha Dal, Santa Singh, at the Central Sikh Museum, the Dal Khalsa today urged the head of the SGPC to withdraw the same. In a letter to SGPC president Avtar Singh Makkar, the organisation has asked him to explain on what basis the SGPC had decided to install the photo of a person who “had challenged the supremacy of the Akal Takht and violated Sikh rehat maryada”. (TNS)
