News & Update

“Mera Russey naa kalgiyan wala

Jag pavein sara russ jaye! “

YUBA CITY, Calif. – A Sikh in California was barred from jury duty because he refused to remove his Kirpan that his religion dictates he wear at all times.

Gursant Singh was told that he could not bring the dagger, known as a Kirpan, into a Sutter County courthouse in Yuba City as a matter of security.

“I either break the law for not showing up for jury duty — they can fine and imprison you if you don’t show up for jury duty — or I break my Sikh code of conduct, one of the two,” Singh said.

A kirpan is a 5-inch blade that serves as a reminder to come to the defense of those in peril.

Other physical articles of the Sikh faith are the kesh or long, uncut hair that symbolizes the perfection of God’s creation, the kangha or a comb used twice a day as a reminder to keep lives tidy and organized, the kara or iron band that is a reminder for restraint in action and the kachera, an undergarment that indicates a soldier’s willingness to be ready for battle or defense at a moment’s notice.

Singh said he would like to be a juror, but would go to jail rather than deny his religious beliefs.
He and dozens of supporters demonstrated outside the courthouse this week, demanding that they be allowed inside while wearing their ceremonial daggers. His jury duty was supposed to begin on Tuesday.

“I feel very strongly that as a citizen of the United States that I should be able to serve as a juror,” Singh said.

Sutter County Court Executive Officer Mary Beth Todd said the requirement that Singh remove his dagger was not an issue of religious freedom, but of security.
“We do have a no-weapons policy,” she said.

Court officials are concerned that the small blade would jeopardize the safety of everyone entering the building.

“It’s important to secure the courthouse,” Todd said. “There are many proceedings that go on every day. It can be an emotionally charged environment.”

The Sikh Coalition said that many other agencies have made exceptions for Sikhs to carry their kirpan, and that it would expect the same from the court.

“A Sikh man with a dagger has never in history gone into a movie theater or anywhere and attacked defenseless people,” Jaskarn Singh said.

Courtesy –
http://www.cbsnews.com/

Acquiring an enormous achievement on foreign land, Ludhiana born Sikh youth Amarbir Singh Gill has been selected as President of the Students’ Union of Royal Holloway University of London. Nearly 9,000 students study in the university of which only 40 to 50 are Indian, and of those only 4 to 5 students belong to the Sikh community.

While talking to a selective group of journalists here, Amarbir Singh Gill said, “The entire credit for my success goes to my father Rajwinder Singh Gill, and my mother Deepinder Kaur, my grandfather Surjit Singh Gill, and my uncle Sachdev Singh Gill.

He said that this is first time that a Punjabi Sikh has received such an honor. He said that his main motive was to spread Sikh philosophy as well as finding solutions to the problems of the student community studying in UK.

He said that with his elevation to such a significant assignment, the Sikh community around the world would gain enhanced respect for their distinct identity. He said that the University would give him £22,000 per annum as remuneration for this assignment.

He said that contrary to India, politics in England are always focused on principles and development issues.

~ Source: http://www.sikh24.com/

“There are some 6,000 Sikhs that live in the mohallah,” says 50-year-old Pardeep Singh. “This is the area where our ancestors lived and we have maintained our culture, traditions and our own educational system,” added the Sikh proudly. Bhai Joga Singh Khalsa Dharmic School and Guru Angat Dev Jee Khalsa Dharmic School both impart religious as well as secular education, with a deep focus on Sikh culture, said Pardeep.

The oldest houses run alongside the narrow, but well-paved and seemingly endless maze of streets. The locality is circumscribed by several gates on all sides, making it perhaps the only gated community of the city.

A majestic symbol of Sikh architecture, the centuries-old Gurdwara Jogan Shah is located in the midst of Peshawar and is one of the two Sikh temples in the city. The spacious three-storey structure is beautifully inlaid with mirror work and is visited twice a day by local residents forsangat – a ceremony where people gather to recite verses from the Guru Granth Sahib. Due to the deteriorating law and order situation, however, another wall has been raised around the building with vigilant police personnel standing on guard around the clock.

“Our gurdwara has been constructed in honour of Bhai Joga Singh, who was venerated in Peshawar, not only amongst Sikhs, but Pukhtuns as well,” says a local elder, Ameer Singh. “There used to be a fair held near the gurdwara every year; however, it has been stopped due to the security situation of the city,” he added nostalgically.

SM Jaffar in his book, Peshawar: City on the Frontier, writes that the gurdawara was known as the dharamshala of Joga Shah, a Hindu fakir. He terms it as one of the most efficiently kept institutions of Sikhs in Peshawar, and states that it can easily accommodate about two thousand persons at a time.

Besides various folk tales associated with Bhai Joga Singh, locals believe a spring used to run through the locality, which was also named after him. This spring – no longer in existence – was said to be famous throughout the Peshawar Valley for its miraculous healing powers and was visited by pilgrims from far and wide.

Several magnificent structures were erected during the Sikh rule of the city from 1823 to 1848. While certain buildings, like Gurdwara Jogan Shah are well-kept, there are many others in dilapidated conditions. The Sikhs of Peshawar say they do their best to keep their heritage alive, however, once an old building collapses it is near impossible to restore it to its original form.

By Hidayat Khan / Photo: Muhammad Iqba
Published in The Express Tribune, March 31^st, 2014.

Baoli Sahib, is located on the banks of the river Ghagghar near Nanak Sagar Dam. It is about one and a half kms from Gurudwara Nanakmata Sahib.

This place is known so because of a small baoli of water. This baoli was brought here with the orders from Shri Guru Nanak Dev Ji.

Some Yogis resided here when Shri Guru Nanak Dev Ji visited this place. They were in jealousy with Guru Nanak Dev Ji and were making magical competition for him.

The yogis, using magical ‘occult powers’, dried up all the water in this area. They then challenged Guru Nanak Dev Ji to bring water here. Guru Nanak Dev ji instructed Bhai Mardana to pick up a spade and go to the nearby river. He told Bhai Mardana to drag the river behind him with the spade without seeing back. Bhai Mardana did as instructed and the river started to follow him as he dragged his spade over the ground. When he reached this place, Bhai Mardana looked back to see if the river was coming behind him.

Immediately, the river stopped following him and stopped at this place. When the river stopped its flow, Guru ji asked the yogis to use their occult powers and move the river further at the place where Guru Ji was sitting. However much they tried, the yogis could not do so. They realized their fault and fell at the feet of the Guru Ji, accepting their defeat. A baoli was constructed here thereafter known as Baoli Sahib.