523. The Man in Blue – Lieutenant General (retired) Kuldip Singh Brar

As I am now in the Amsterdam Guru Nanak Gurdwara and am not rushing from one meeting to the other, I have time to write a Man in Blue Column about the ‘assault’ on Lieutenant General (retired) Kuldip Singh Brar.

In writing this I have put myself in the position of one of the accused and assumed that this person was both guilty and intelligent.

“I stand here accused of assaulting lieutenant general (retired) Kuldip Singh Brar and I admit that I am guilty and should undergo the appropriate punishment.

This statement explains why I assaulted an old man on holiday in the UK. It is not a plea for clemency, which would be unworthy for a Sikh.

In June 1984 the general was ordered by the Indira Gandhi government to attack the Harmandr Sahib complex. I do not know the specifics of his order but the explanation given at the time was that there were about 50 terrorists in the complex. Whether his orders were to eliminate these terrorists, or whether he had to try and arrest them and bring them to justice I do not know.

The known fact is that the Harmandr Sahib complex was attacked on the day when many Sikhs went there from the early morning to commemorate the martyrdom of Guru Arjan on the 30th of May 1606. The result was that at least 1000 people were killed and not just the 50 alleged terrorists.

I am willing to concede that there were not 50 but maybe up to 100 alleged terrorists in the Harmandr Sahib complex. I also understand that during an operation on this scale some civilians are bound to find themselves in the line of fire, and become what are sometimes called collateral victims.

But the general and his men killed at least one thousand people during the operation, and he was never held responsible for killing 900 innocent visitors to Harmandr Sahib on the 6th of June 1984.

The general said that he acted on orders, but if you carry out criminal orders you are a criminal yourself, as the post World War II Nurnberg trials made clear.

The general is guilty of ‘war crimes’, but he never appeared in court. The Indira Gandhi government ordered the general to commit ‘war crimes’ and did not appear in court either.

Those that were responsible for the mass killings of Sikhs at the end of October and beginning of November 1984 are still walking free, and some of these are even part of the present Indian government, which has a Sikh prime minister.

But I will be tried and receive my due punishment, as I should.“

A statement like this would make headlines. But will these assaulters of the retired lieutenant general be mice or men ? Will they be ruled by anger or by wisdom ?

The Tribune – Navjot Kaur Sidhu protests against ‘poor’ law and order

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, December 21. While the state government faced the heat from the Opposition on the floor of the House over law and order, the issue today evoked a strong reaction from one of its own members with Chief Parliamentary Secretary Navjot Kaur Sidhu staging a protest outside the venue of the ongoing All-India Conference of Commissioners of Police here.

She reached outside the conference venue at 4.30 pm. She said there was an urgent need to address the law and order situation in Amritsar and sought the deployment of women police personnel to curb eve-teasing. She also demanded that a helpline be launched to check crime against women and that such cases should be tried by fast-track courts.

She lodged strong protest against an officer of the rank of Superintendent of Police (SP) who, she alleged, had been using abusive language against women and pressuring people to withdraw cases after taking money from the opposite party.She demanded that an inquiry be initiated against him and he be transferred out of the city. Quoting several cases, she alleged that the police had been working in an autocratic manner. She wanted to submit a memorandum to the Commissioner of Police, who was busy at the conference. She raised slogans against the Police Department and sought justice for women.

The protesters were pacified after Police Commissioner Ram Singh came outside along and accepted the memorandum.

The first All-India conference of Police Commissioners was jointly inaugurated by state Director-General of Police (DGP) Sumedh Singh Saini and KN Sharma, DGP, Bureau of Police Research and Development, along with the DGP of Andhra Pradesh, V Dinesh Reddy. Sharma said to ensure the safety and liberty of citizens, “we need to do away with the archaic policing system and develop a people-friendly immediate response system.”

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2012/20121222/punjab.htm#4

The Tribune – Sarna vows more transparency in running DSGMC affairs

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, December 21. Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (DSGMC) president Paramjit Singh Sarna today said the Evacuee Trust Property Board had handed them over the ‘kar sewa’ of Gurdwara Dehra Sahib in Lahore.

Also, he said they would bring in more transparency in the DSGMC affairs on being voted back to power. He denied the charges of corruption against him.

Talking to mediapersons after his return from Nankana Sahib ahead of the DSGMC elections, Sarna said they will soon prepare a blueprint and hand over the ‘kar sewa’ to Baba Jagtar Singh. He said the Trust had also begun the repair work of another historic gurdwara in Sialkot following efforts by the DSGMC.

On the forthcoming DSGMC elections, he said they were fully prepared for it and will retain their hold on it with a thumping majority. He said they had nominated most of their candidates and the remaining too will be done soon.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2012/20121222/punjab.htm#7

The Asian Age – Congress to hold meet to pick Himachal Chief Minister

Asian Age Correspondent

Simla, 22 December 2012. A meeting of the Himachal Pradesh Congress Legislature Party will be held in Shimla on Saturday to elect a leader who will become the new chief minister of the state.

A three-member team of AICC observers consisting of Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit, Congress general secretary Janardhan Dwivedi and Congress general secretary in charge of Himachal Pradesh Birender Singh will be attending the meeting, Mr Dwivedi told reporters on Friday.

The Congress defeated the BJP while being led by party veteran and PCC chief Virbhadra Singh. Mr Singh, a five-time CM, has the support of over 80 per cent of the newly-elected MLAs; he appears to be the front-runner in the race for CM.

Mr Singh has said Congress president Sonia Gandhi will decide the CM. A surprise decision is unlikely. “The choice is pretty obvious,” said a leader who felt that Mr Anand Sharma, a known detractor of Mr Singh, is required at the Centre.

http://www.asianage.com/india/cong-hold-meet-pick-himachal-cmcong-hold-meet-pick-himachal-cm-290

Luik / Liège Kirtan Darbar – 22 September 2012

Cute small girls

Serious work !

Left junior Saini girl, middle her sister Palwinder Kaur and right Navdeep Kaur
Small persons in front

Palki Sahib, the throne of the Guru Granth Sahib

Too many Singhs !

Sikhs from other areas of Belgium and from the UK were also present

Guru Nanak Prakash Gurdwara
625 Rue Saint Leonard
B-4000 Liège

To see more Belgium and Netherlands gurdwara pictures :

http://www.flickr.com/photos/12445197@N05/sets/72157622147381380/

More Luik – Liège pictures to follow
Harjinder Singh
Man in Blue

The Tribune – Women breach security of Rashtrapati Bhawan

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, December 21. Only some lucky few in the country can claim of never having faced any sort of abuse — physical, verbal or emotional — ever in their lives, a fact which was evident from the way ordinary women today took to the streets, venting their anger against the inhuman Delhi gang rape that has shaken the nation.

The National Capital erupted with a series of protests against how India, especially its law enforcement agencies, treat women suffering at the hands of uncouth men with a protester also managing to breach the security of the most well-protected place in the Capital: the Rashtrapati Bhawan.

Swati, a young student, broke through the gates and entered the complex where President Pranab Mukherjee resides. “Why do we need any permission to speak to our own President? Does anyone ask the women for permission before raping them and harassing them? We are here to make our concerns heard, and for that we do not need any permission,” Swati said, after she was escorted outside by security personnel.

As women activists and students determinedly marched toward Mukherjee’s Raisina Hills’ residence, stormed the gates and tried to break through, the extent of their anger was evident. With no women constables to stop them, activists managed to break through the barricades and run towards the South and North Blocks and reach the gates. The protesters later marched toward India Gate, where they were joined by men, housewives and children in a candle light vigil, later in the evening.

If the march, which took place under the aegis of the Jawahar Lal Nehru University Student Union, the All-India Democratic Women’s Organisation, the National Federation of Indian Women and the Young Women’s Christian Association and events that followed is any indication it is quite evident that protests by women are acquiring a new purpose.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2012/20121222/nation.htm#9

Dawn – 11 killed on Pakistan-Iran border

Saleem Shahid

Quetta, 22 December 2012. Eleven illegal immigrants were reportedly killed on Friday in a firing incident in Pothan area, near Pakistan-Iran border and some 80 kilometres northwest of Gwadar.

Balochistan Home Secretary told Dawn that special teams had been dispatched for confirmation of the incident.

Reports suggested that the illegal immigrants included Tajiks, Uzbeks and Pakistanis, and they wanted to cross the border through illegal channels when they were fired upon by unknown persons.

Earlier this year, 11 such immigrants were killed by unknown armed men while they wanted to cross the Iranian border through illegal channels.

http://dawn.com/2012/12/22/11-killed-on-pak-iran-border/