NEW DELHI—The foundation stone for the 1984 Genocide Memorial was laid in the presence of Giani Gurbachan Singh, Giani Tirlochan Singh, Giani Balwant Singh Nandgarh and Giani Mall Singh Ji. Giani Iqbal Singh of Patna Sahib and Giani Kulwant Singh of Hazur Sahib were also scheduled to be present on the occasion but could not make it.
Among others, various political leaders were also present on the scene including Sukhbir Badal (Deputy CM), BJP leaders Rajnath Singh, Sushma Swaraj, Vijay Goel, Avtar Makkar (President SGPC), Harsimrat Badal (Member Parliament), Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa, Naresh Gujral, Manjit Singh GK (President DSGMC), Manjinder Singh Sirsa (General Seretary).
The foundation stone was laid an hour earlier than the agreed upon schedule, after organizing ardas and kirtan. Various Sikh organizations and Singh Sabhas announced a huge sum of money to aid in the construction of the memorial.
The leaders of DSGMC who were present on the scene said that they would readily accept all challenges presented to them and would take it upon themselves to complete the memorial—unlike the previous leaders who, under pressure from the Central Government, have failed to perform their duty.
BJP and RSS Leaders Join the Ceremony for “Victim’s Memorial”
Interestingly, the DSGMC is referring to the project as a “memorial dedicated to the victim’s of 1984”. Sikh24 has learned that unlike the memorial at Sri Darbar Sahib Amritsar, the Delhi based project may also commemorate the loss of army and police lives during Operation Bluestar. Such a move would shame the current leadership of the DSGMC since the army personnel had purposely chosen to attack the Harmandir Sahib shrine and dozens of other Gurdwaras across Punjab. It is a known fact that many Sikh employees of the Indian Army had refused to join the attack and they were consequently discharged from their duties.
The Dal Khalsa organisation has also condemned the presence of various BJP leaders, including Rajnath Singh, a senior official with ties to the Rashtriya Sikh Sangat organisation. In a press statement, Bhai Kanwarpal Singh of the Dal Khalsa alleged that Rajnath, along with other BJP leaders are responsible for the mass killings of Muslims in Gujarat. Kanwarpal Singh stated that, “what Congress did to Sikhs in 1984, the BJP did the same with innocent Muslims in 2002. Both butchered the minorities to appease and catch majority vote-bank.”
