Last Friday, Pyaare Singh had a phone call from his children’s school. The teacher calling from school said, “Your children, both Bhagat Singh and Himmat Singh, didn’t have their lunch at lunch time and they have been praying on the bench.”Pyaare Singh was at work so he sent his wife to the school to persuade the children to eat something. When the mother arrived at school with some food, Himmat Singh was crying and broke a small piece of Roti and put it into his elder brother’s mouth and said, “Brother! Please eat. Otherwise you will get ill and die. If you eat, then I will eat.”
Their mother lovingly explained to them that they need to remain strong and healthy to struggle against misdeeds. The children didn’t eat at school.
When the children came home, the mother embraced them both and prayed. She then humbly requested her children to eat food. She explained “If the Khalsa of the Guru remains hungry then we cannot struggle for [the nation]. Bhai Gurbaksh Singh is a blessed soul. We cannot all be as blessed as Bhai Gurbaksh Singh.” The children accepted their mother’s request and ate.
The next day, the children went to school and didn’t eat anything again. They had taken some printouts about Bhai Gurbaksh Singh Jee’s hunger strike and put them in their school bag without the knowledge of their parents. As both children didn’t eat anything at school during break and lunch and were sitting by themselves, students and staff noticed and got concerned.Pyaare Singh was invited to school as the school was taking this as a serious issue. The Headteacher was concerned and wanted to address the matter. Both father and mother came to school and met with the Headteacher in the office.
They were told that the whole school and dinner ladies were concerned that the children had refused lunch. They said that they had heard the whole story about Bhai Gurbaksh Singh jee. Everyone showed interest in why the children were not eating and who Sikhs are.
There were two Hindu teachers sitting in a meeting. The Headmaster asked if Pyaare Singh can give further information about Bhai Gurbaksh Singh jee’s hunger strike. Pyaare Singh explained that firstly they had never told their children to do anything of this kind and they have decided to act the way they have from what they have seen in the news and their own personal feeling. Pyaare Singh added that Sikhs are a minority and in India, Sikhs are mistreated, and whatever is happening in India is hurting the whole family.
The UK born Hindu teachers were very supportive of the cause of the Sikhs and were ashamed, along with the other school staff at the injustices committed by India against Sikhs. The Business Manager said, “Himmat, asked me for help. He told me that if I care then I needed to help them because Sikhs who have finished their prison sentences are not being released, and their crime is that they are Sikhs.”
Arriving home, Bhagat Singh said to his parents, “You did bad today. The English teacher could have helped us.”
The father lovingly explained to both sons, “Well done for raising awareness today. Now all the school knows about Bhai Gurbaksh Singh and the Sikhs not being released from prisons.”
The school agreed with the parents that from now on for two weeks, their mother will feed the children herself with her own hands and bring the children home for lunch.
Please sign the petition : https://secure.avaaz.org/en/petition/Government_of_IndiaPunjab_Stop_Indias_illegal_incarceration_of_Sikh_prisoners/?copy
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