The thing is now, even for dating, it does normally involve looking at the person. I don't think people would take a step such as dating if the attraction wasn't strong.
Also there is quite a deal of attachment involved in dating, and the broken hearts of others throught my short life experience has kept me away. I mostly disagree with the being bg-gf part, as I see this as being partners just like husband and wife. And I absolutely disagree with people being others exes, I see this very similarly to being divorced and makes it seem that the persons who partook of dating did believe themselves as being partners.
I am fine with meeting, I am fine with talking, but dating and the context it is normally used, doesn't agree with me. To be honest, when I was a young teenager, I thought dating was aboout people sleeping with someone, probably due to seeing most of dating from soap operas on television, but then this is also where many asians seem to have picked up this habit in the uk, and now it has only increased here, since originally many indian families were conservative.
I also do think that some cultures that follow sikhi are more tolerant with dating that others, so banning it would be enforcing ones culture onto others, such as the conservative jatt culture of the SGPC which would probably be against dating. Also I do think the Guru jis' kshatriya cultural background would be against dating. However I do not see sikhi as destroying mulitculturalism, and diferent cultures should be tolerated. But this is my view.
I have heard views from/about some sanatan sikhs that they are ok for dating, including it seems projectnaad, as I talked to the singh and he said he was sanatan, although he had earlier extremist views that didn't seem sanatan, but he has changed views now lol
But on the other hand, I know some sanatan sikhs, one is a khatri that is udasi, and the other his friend a jatt that is towards nihang and udasi tradition where both seem against it. I do not see as sikhi saying you should or shouldn't do dating, but more of the individuals cultural background. However, we should beware of things like lust and attachment. I have seen the attachment of dating hurting many people.
My background is wary of dating as we are quite hardcore traditional annakhi background that sees woman as izzat of family and find it utmost important to protect the women lol In UK, stuff like conversions has caused much paranoia amongst dating, and is very much more associated with the pub/club type culture and hedonism. But there are some very honourable people that seem to be in a dating type of relationship that do marry, or it seems almost certain that they will marry. Its only bad when some guys were only out for pre-marital fun, and the girl is given a "tokha" like a false promise of marriage.