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Time of India
3 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
10 years on, justice awaited in Punjab sacrilege cases
Bathinda: Come Sunday, Punjab will mark 10 years since June 1, 2015, when the bir of Guru Granth Sahib was stolen from a gurdwara in Burj Jawahar Singh Wala village near Bargari, Faridkot, and which eventually led to the sacrilege of the Sikh scripture later in Oct that year, triggering a turmoil in panthic politics. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now With justice still awaited in the sacrilege cases of Oct 2015 and police firing upon protesters later, Sikh organisations have decided to mark the day by holding a protest march from Gurdwara Burj Jawahar Singh Wala to the light point intersection of Kotkapura, where police took action against protesters in the early hours of Oct 14, 2015. Thr groups accuse successive govts of the state by using the emotional issue of sacrilege and the subsequent killing of two protesters for political gains, but failing to deliver justice. Investigations into the case are yet to reach a conclsuive end in the courts. A Punjab Police special investigations team (SIT), headed by retired DIG Ranbir Singh Khatra, claimed to have cracked the case, but it did not result inany convictions. Dera Sacha Sauda head Gurmeet Ram Rahim was also named in the cases and in the chargesheets filed by the police in three interrelated sacrilege cases, but no headway was made. Sikh organisations have only angered after cases were transferred to courts in Chandigarh. "Justice being elusive makes us think that Sikhs are treated differently even in Punjab, where we are in majority," said Behbal Kalan police firing victim Krishan Bhagwan Singh's son, Sukhraj Singh, who held a long protest for justice. Even though the he was named in sacrilege cases and his sect's member Pardeep Kler was arrested on Feb 9, 2024, Ram Rahim and his adopted daughter, Honeypreet, were not brought to Punjab for investigation. "This points to the non-seriousness of the govts in delivering justice," said Sukhraj. "It seems even a decade is not enough to provide justice, especially when the entire Sikh Panth is demanding it. Right from Shiromani Akali Dal to Congress and Aam Aadmi Party, all played with the sentiments of Sikhs and looked only into electoral gains but failed when it came to delivering justice," said Gurdeep Singh Bathinda, who was associated with the cases from the beginning.
News18
5 days ago
- Politics
- News18
Guru Arjan Dev Martyrdom Day 2025: All You Need To Know About The Fifth Sikh Guru
Last Updated: Guru Arjan Dev Martyrdom Day 2025: The fifth Sikh Guru, was martyred on May 30, 1606, by Emperor Jahangir. Guru Arjan Dev Martyrdom Day 2025: Guru Arjan Dev was the fifth Guru of Sikhism. He was born on April 15, 1563, in Goindwal, which is now part of Punjab, India. He is highly regarded for his major contributions to the Sikh faith, including starting the construction of Amritsar's Harmandir Sahib, famously known as the Golden Temple. Guru Arjan took over as the Sikh Guru in 1581, succeeding his father, Guru Ram Das. Building on the foundation laid by his predecessors, he played a vital role in strengthening Sikhism. He is also regarded as the first Sikh Guru to be martyred. Among his key accomplishments was the compilation of the Adi Granth, which eventually became the Guru Granth Sahib, the core scripture of Sikhism. He gathered the writings of the first four Gurus, along with selected hymns from various saints, uniting them in the Adi Granth. Guru Arjan Dev was martyred on May 30, 1606, by the order of the Mughal Emperor Jahangir. While historical records vary, the most widely accepted account describe Guru Arjan's arrest and brutal torture. He was taken to Lahore, where he endured severe torture, including being forced to sit on a heated iron plate while boiling sand was poured over him. Despite the immense pain, Guru Arjan Dev stayed serene and composed, reciting hymns from the Adi Granth throughout his ordeal. According to records, Jahangir viewed Guru Arjan Dev's influence as a threat to imperial rule. The Guru was accused of supporting rebellious activities and aiding Jahangir's eldest son Khusrau Mirza, who had challenged the emperor's authority. Guru Arjan Dev's martyrdom had a profound impact on history and deeply strengthened the determination of the Sikh community. It became a key turning point, inspiring Sikhs to resist persecution and injustice. This struggle eventually led to the Sikh faith becoming more militarised under the leadership of Guru Arjan Dev's son, Guru Hargobind Sahib. Apart from compiling the Adi Granth and starting the construction of Harmandir Sahib, here are some of the most important achievements of Guru Arjan Dev: Guru Arjan Dev devoted great effort to spreading Sikh teachings. He stressed the significance of following the Guru's teachings, maintaining devotion to God, and practicing selfless service. His work helped draw many new followers. Even today, his teachings and writings remain a vital source of guidance for Sikhs worldwide. Guru Arjan Dev promoted social equality and started the tradition of langar, a community kitchen that served free meals to everyone, regardless of caste or social status. This practice encouraged unity and equality. Guru Arjan Dev actively encouraged the growth of arts, literature, and music within the Sikh community. He composed many hymns that are part of the Guru Granth Sahib. Additionally, he inspired and supported prominent musicians and poets of his era, helping to enrich and elevate Sikh cultural and artistic heritage. First Published:
Indian Express
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
Akal Takht Sahib removes ban on Sikh preacher Ranjit Dhadrianwale after he apologises for ‘misinterpreting Gurbani'
Sri Akal Takht Sahib, the supreme temporal seat of the Sikhs, has lifted the ban on preacher Ranjit Singh Dhadrianwale over allegations of misinterpreting the Gurbani. Dhadrianwale, who is considered to be the archrival of Damdami Taksal head Harnam Singh Dhuma, appeared before the five Sikh Jathedars at Sri Akal Takht Sahib on Wednesday and sought forgiveness for his mistakes. Accepting his apology, the jathedars removed the five-year-old ban on his religious congregations. Last week, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) tasked with looking into a rape-murder case in Patiala, had recommended that the FIR against Dhadrianwale, registered in December last year, be cancelled since it could not find anything to substantiate the allegations. Lifting of the ban against Dhadrianwale comes at a time when Dhuma has turned against the Shiromani Akali Dal (Badal) and the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC). Dhuma wants the SGPC to remove Akal Takht Sahib's acting Jathedar, Giani Kuldeep Singh Gargaj, who was instrumental in making Dhadrianwale appear before the Akal Takht Sahib seeking forgiveness. Dhuma has been close to the BJP in recent years, especially since the SAD(B) snapped political ties with the longtime ally. The ban on Ranjit Dhadrianwale In 2019, the Akal Takht formed a five-member committee to probe the allegations against preacher Ranjit Singh Dhadrianwale for allegedly misinterpreting the Gurbani (hymns in the Guru Granth Sahib) and insulting Sikh customs. On August 24, 2020, the Akal Takht asked the Sikh community to maintain distance from Dhadrianwale until he issued a clarification on the allegations and apologised for it. The ban was viewed as a continuation of the issues between the preacher and Dhuma. A statement by then Jathedar Giani Harpreet Singh said, 'The committee has found that Dhadrianwale is guilty of making false statements regarding Sikh rituals and customs, and he is also not ready to appear to clarify the allegations against him. So, all Sikhs are advised against inviting him to any religious congregation. No Sikh should listen to Dhadrianwale, or watch, or forward his videos. Further action can be taken against Dhadrianwale if he doesn't correct his path.' A similar order was issued by the Sikh Jathedars for the preacher's companion Harvinder Singh. Dhadrianwale had then said that he was ready to give all the answers live in a televised debate, which the Akal Takht Jathedar saw as a challenge to its authority. Dhadrianwale, however, did not face any harsh punishment from the Akal Takht Sahib for his alleged religious misconduct, but was asked to offer karah parshad (sacred food offering) worth Rs 501 at the Akal Takht Sahib and resume his religious preaching activities. The issue between Harnam Dhuma and Ranjit Dhadarianwale On May 17, 2016, Dhadrianwale was attacked near Barewal village in Ludhiana. Bhupinder Singh Khasi Kalan, who was travelling with him, was shot dead in the attack. The Sikh seminary, Damdami Taksal, later admitted that the Ludhiana police had booked its men and vehicles in connection with the attack. At the time of the attack, Damdami Taksal head Harnam Singh Dhuma had been politically supporting the SAD(B) for 10 years under the banner of the Sant Samaj. Dhadrianwale, however, never had any links to the SAD(B) but was close to Congress leaders in Punjab. At his religious congregations during the Akali Dal's rule, Dhadrianwale had started criticising the incumbent political establishment in the state over various issues, without naming the SAD(B). His issues with the SAD(B), however, peaked over the incident involving the desecration of the Guru Granth Sahib in Bargari village of Faridkot in 2015. Along with another Sikh preacher, Panthpreet Singh, Dhadrianwale sat on a dharna, which led to protests across the state, including the killing of two Sikh protesters in police firing in Behbal Kalan. They repeatedly expressed anger against the state government for failing to arrest the culprits. Dhadrianwale also used his religious congregations to lead the attack on the government. Over the years, Dhadrianwale also began criticising a large section of the Sant Samaj for alleged orthodox practices and for encouraging the culture of godmen in Punjab. He also flayed the Sant Samaj for its passive role while the state was simmering with protests against the desecration incidents. Besides heading the Damdami Taksal, Harnam Singh Dhuma is also the president of the Sant Samaj. Interestingly, Dhadrianwale had also faced criticism for alleged orthodox practices and for acting as a godman during the initial years of his rise. Famous Punjabi singer Babbu Maan had written a song about the godmen culture in Punjab, following which Dhadrianwale criticised the vocalist for targeting him in the popular song. But later, Dhadrianwale gradually shunned the alleged orthodox practices, changed his ways, and gave up the heavy security and red beacon. He also stopped having armed bodyguards. He began requesting his followers not to call him 'Sant' or 'Baba', but just 'brother'. These changes enabled him to take on Sant Samaj leaders for allegedly enjoying a luxurious 'godmen lifestyle', and he continued to criticise them in his religious congregations. His videos often go viral on social media. He had once even referred to Dhuma as a 'sarkari sant (government-sponsored preacher)'.
Indian Express
19-05-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
Punjab AAP MLA puts Mann govt in dock over ‘liquor mafia': Who is Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh?
Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)'s MLA Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh, who represents Punjab's Amritsar North constituency, has hit out at his own party and its government over deaths due to spurious liquor consumption in the state. Singh has held liquor mafia responsible for the crisis in Punjab of spurious liquor, which claimed 27 lives in Amritsar between March 12 and March 15, alleging that the mafia was flourishing on the watch of the Bhagwant Mann-led AAP government. 'Governments change, but the mafia remains the same,' said Singh on March 14. 'I asked (Punjab Assembly) Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan to hold a debate on mafia influence. Last year, Sangrur saw a hooch tragedy. In 2020, more than 100 people lost their lives in Majha after consuming illicit liquor. But I was not even provided with the names of the accused and the status of the investigation of these incidents.' He added that he had all the 'information' about the liquor mafia operating in the state. Singh is originally from Bihar and is a 1998-batch Indian Police Service (IPS) officer. He was the Inspector General of Police in Punjab between August 2016 and April 2021, working under then chief ministers like Parkash Singh Badal and Captain Amarinder Singh. Singh took charge as the IG at a time of public disquiet over the sacrilege cases starting June 2015, when the Guru Granth Sahib was allegedly desecrated in the Faridkot district. In October of the same year, the police fired at protesting crowds in Kotkapura and Behbal Kalan, killing two people. Singh was part of the Special Investigating Team (SIT) that probed the police firings. In April 2021, the Punjab High Court quashed the probe reports submitted by police in two FIRs registered in connection with 2015 Kotkapura violence. Singh resigned immediately after this, and joined the AAP in June 2021. Addressing the media after his resignation, Singh made a statement that would put a lot of heat on the then Amarinder Singh-led Congress government. 'I was watching the manner in which the SIT report got quashed (by the HC). Actually, the accused in the Guru Granth Sahib sacrilege case were directing the Punjab government. The accused were making all the decisions. So, a political revolution is necessary in the state,' he had then claimed. For the Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP, which was looking to enter Punjab politics, Singh was a key face who had taken on the Congress government and had a growing base among the Sikh community despite not hailing from the state. The AAP put up his posters in different parts of the state after he joined the party in the run-up to the February 2022 state Assembly elections. Singh's popularity paid off as he won the Amritsar North seat as a debutant by about 29,000 votes, defeating the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and Congress candidates. While there was then speculation that he would be given a Cabinet berth, Singh was not given any important role in the Bhagwant Mann government. Pushed to the corner in the AAP structure with no significant position, Singh had been speaking out against his party-led government for some time now. During the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, while campaigning for the AAP's Amritsar candidate and minister Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal, the former IPS officer said he had been 'sidelined' within the party. He has also repeatedly claimed that CM Mann has failed to deliver justice in the sacrilege cases. During the 2024 Lok Sabha poll campaign, Singh even alleged that his phone was 'tapped' by the Punjab government and that his WhatsApp account was 'blocked' by the government. In the same campaign, Singh said his 'job' was 'to raise issues'. 'This is why I have been made an MLA. My statements are not attacks but efforts to solve the problem before everything gets out of our hands,' he said. He has maintained that his remarks were not reflective of his 'loyalty' to the party. In February, Singh said the AAP government's 'poor governance' in Punjab was the reason for the party's defeat in the Delhi Assembly polls. He has also called for the removal of Mann as the CM.
The Print
13-05-2025
- Politics
- The Print
A gurdwara, a madrasa, a Catholic school pick up the pieces. Every alley in Poonch bears scars of loss
It was the morning of 7 May. Devotees had just left the gurdwara after morning prayers. This was the first incident of cross-border shelling in Poonch that captured national attention. Even during Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) briefings, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri mentioned the attack on the gurdwara and the Sikh community at least twice. Splinters flew from all directions into the praying room, yet the spot where the Guru Granth Sahib rested was untouched. 'It was all smoke. The shell first hit the edge of the small temple nearby, and then it struck our gurdwara. But by the grace of God, our Guru Granth Sahib was untouched,' said 55-year-old Singh, pointing to the damage. Poonch: Sabar Singh, head of the Gurdwara Sahib in Poonch, was locking the doors when a shell tore through the back wall. But before he ran, he grabbed the holy book. The door came off, the windows were shattered, and the back wall turned into rubble. But it wasn't just the gurdwara. A madrasa, a catholic school, and over three dozen homes and vehicles were also damaged in intense shelling by Pakistan. On 6/7 May, Pakistan launched multiple attacks using drones, shells and other munitions along the LoC following the precision strikes carried out by Indian armed forces under Operation Sindoor in retaliation for the 22 April Pahalgam terror attack. With a ceasefire announced on 11 May, Poonch city stands battered. Many residents—along with visitors and migrant workers who had come to the town—fled to safer locations and have yet to return. Singh and his wife too moved their children and grandchildren to Jammu. But the couple didn't leave. 'Had we left, who would have taken care of the Guru Granth Sahib?' he says, standing with folded hands. Also Read: 'Not afraid to die'—in 2 Ferozepur border villages, elders stood guard all night, youth dug bunkers by day 'Our time hadn't come yet' Balbir Singh and his family of 13—including his mother, three brothers, and their children—were sleeping on the ground floor when they were jolted awake by three loud explosions targeting their home. In the early hours of 9 May, at least three shells struck their three-storey house. One tore through the ceilings of the upper two floors before hitting the ground. But, no one was injured. Singh attributes their survival to fate, saying, 'Our time hadn't come yet.' Now, a portion of his house lies in rubble. The few residents who stayed back in Poonch to guard their homes described the intervening night of 8 and 9 May as terrifying. Shelling from the Pakistani side was intense and relentless, damaging over two dozen houses in a single night. For Singh, the cost of repairing his home will be steep. The workers have left. The town is empty. Most people are biding their time—to be sure that peace has truly prevailed, that there will be no more shelling. 'Who will pay for the renovation now, in this India-Pakistan escalation? Whether through their lives, limbs, or property — it's civilians who bear the cost. Especially those who live by the border,' Singh says, as his grandmother sits in a corner of the courtyard, mumbling prayers. A madrasa, a catholic school Hakim Deen, a chef at the Jamia Zia-ul-Uloom madrasa in Poonch, was cooking lunch for students when he heard a loud explosion. He rushed upstairs and saw a deep crater in the ceiling and ustaad (teacher) Mohammed Qari lying in the debris. He was hit by a splinter. Five children lay unconscious on the desk, few fell on the ground, bleeding. Everyone at the madrasa quickly gathered and rushed the injured to the hospital. Qari did not survive. The five children are currently under treatment. 'The shell came from there,' Deen says, pointing toward the lush green vale that overlooks the madrasa. Two kilometres away, a portion of Christ School lies in rubble. The neighbourhood is wrapped in silence. The death of 13-year-old twin siblings on their way to school, and injuries suffered by several students, has driven the entire community to flee. Another kilometre down, a shop has been reduced to debris. Just metres away, a rooftop has collapsed. Every street, lane, and alley in Poonch carries the scars of conflict. The city is replete with stories of damage to lives, limbs, and property. Though a temporary understanding has been reached to pause hostilities, residents say it will take years to recover from the trauma this conflict has inflicted. The only sounds piercing the heavy silence wrapping the city is the Poonch river, its violent flow smashing the lull that follows a calamity. A tributary of the Jhelum, the river enters Pakistan through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. The once-picturesque vale, anointed as 'Mini Kashmir', now stands as a silent marker of bloodshed and loss. 'Iss pahadiyon ke peeche se aate hain gole,' someone mutters. The shells, they say, come from behind those hills. The hills, the silent spectator of the town's suffering. 'Inn wadiyon ne sab dekha hai (These hills have seen all),' says Mohammad Imran, as he leaves for Doda to get his wife and kids back. (Edited by Amrtansh Arora) Also Read: In Bhuj, clouds of war brought back 1971 memories. When hundreds of women rebuilt IAF runway by hand
