AMRITSAR Taking on the Government of India for ill-treating pro-freedom Sikh leader and recently elected Member of Parliament Amritpal Singh, Takht Sri Damdama Sahib jathedar Giani Harpreet Singh on Sunday said, ‘Hindu Rashtra-Zindabad is hailed in India, what is wrong with Sikh Rashtra slogan?”

After meeting with parents of Amritpal Singh who is lodged to Dibrugarh Jail of Assam under the contentious National Security Act (NSA), he was responding to the queries of the journalists in the complex of Sri Darbar Sahib here. 

He said, “The Sikh men and women are being elected to parliaments in foreign countries. If any Sikh reaches Parliament in India, NSA is invoked on him. Hindu-Rashtra Zindabad is raised in Indian Parliament and those who raise this slogans, are honoured, but if any Sikh youth speaks on Sikh Rashtra, what is wrong with it?”

“I would like to ask the government that there must be no discrimination against the Sikhs. Rules are different for Punjab and other states. In other states, NSA is invoked for only one year, but in Punjab it is for two years. Keeping Amritpal Singh behind bars is unjust. It should not be done. On these matters, we held discussion with the family”, he said. 

The former acting jathedar of Akal Takht said, “This is a bad intentiion of the government which has always committed excesses against the Sikhs. Extending detention under the NSA a day before the election is a big excess. The Sikhs are made feel second or third class citizen in this country”. 

“The terror was created without any reason during the oath taking of Amritpal Singh. The government is not even honouring the mandate he got from the people. India calls itself as largest democracy of the world. If it is so, there must be honour for a democratically elected leader and he and other Sikh youths lodged under the NSA should be released from the jail”, said Giani Harpreet Singh. 

Reacting to the attack on Shiv Sena leader who often makes hateful speeches against the Sikhs, he said, “I am not an advocate of violence, but many people are working to spread hate on communal lines. Spreading hate against any religion and its ethos is very unfortunate. Speaking against any religion is also not fair”. 

On the anniversary of 1984 army attack on Sri Darbar Sahib and Akal Takht in 2020, he, as jathedar of Akal Takht, said, every Sikh wanted it and if the government offers them formation a separate nation, they will accept it happily.

While interacting with the media following the culmination of the annual function at Akal Takht, he said,

“The Sikhs are in state of enthusiasm on the anniversary. As a result they raise the slogans in favour of Khalistan. There is nothing wrong if slogans are raised after the function. It is wrong if they do so amid the function as it disrupts it”.

Further speaking on the demand of Khalistan, he said, “If the Indian government offers us Khalistan, what else do we need? We will accept it. Which Sikh is there in the world, who doesn’t wishes it?”