HOSHIARPUR, Punjab—To commemorate 30 years since the Nov 1984 anti-Sikh pogroms, the Dal Khalsa has resolved to organize a Rights and Justice March from Sri Akal Takht Sahib to Delhi based Embassy of the United Nations to seek world body intervention for justice and political resolution to the Punjab problem.
This year commemorates 30 years since the Nov 1984 pogrom. This year sees the rule of a party who is wedded to Hindutva and whose leadership wrongly suggests that they were not party to the crime against the Sikhs during this difficult times, said H S Dhami, head of the pro-independence Sikh group, while addressing the press conference here today.
“Sikhs were hounded and killed in Delhi. So, we propose to go to Delhi. We plan to march to Delhi. Not just for calls of justice but more. Not just for remembrance but more. Not just for speeches of allegations but more,” said Dhami.
During these agonizing years, the victims, their relatives and friends, the community and its concerned leadership have done whatever has been possible to get justice but to no avail.
Flanked with party spokesperson Kanwar Pal Singh, Dr Manjinder Singh, Dhami said Sikhs have lost all hopes in getting justice from the Indian system. He said the Nov. genocide was sponsored and patronized by the political establishment of those times, hence the state would never punish the perpetrators. Seeking UN intervention for a political solution of the crisis in Punjab, he said no doubt that punishing the perpetrators of Nov 84 was required, but “mere punishment without recourse to seeking a political resolution of the Punjab problem is like losing Crimea to Russia and then imposing sanctions.”
He said this march would remind the Indian state that just as this country continues to remember the mythical Ravana by burning his effigy on Dusshera every year, we the Sikhs will continue to remember the modern day Ravanas of the Sikhs who played the death Tandav against innocent Sikhs.
Reaching out to other ethnic minorities, Dhami told the media that they have invited the Kashmiris, the Nagas and other ethnic minorities including Christians to participate in the march as “we all have suffered oppression from same oppressor.” He added that they would seek cooperation from all like-minded Sikh organizations, mainly SAD (Panch Pardhani), Damdami Taksal, Khalsa Panchayat, United Sikh Movement, and Akhand Kirtani Jatha.
While interacting with the media, he said the march would start from Sri Akal Takht Sahib on Nov 2. and passing through Ludhiana and Fatehgarh Sahib it would reach Delhi on 3rd morning. He further said the march would proceed from Bangla Sahib Gurdwara to Jantar Mantar, where a rally would be held. He said a select number of representatives within the community and other minorities would go to UN office to submit the memorandum to its officials.
Giving the call to the people of Punjab to proceed to Delhi, he said 30 years ago India –the so-called largest democracy in the world- showed its brute, shameless and satanic face when it master-minded the killing and mayhem against absolutely innocent Sikhs –men, women and children on the streets of its capital city Delhi, Kanpur and other cities across the country.
