Sikh News What Is Wrong In Making A Memorial For Bluestar Martyrs ?

[Vikram singh]

Dal Khalsa, a radical Sikh body, said on Tuesday that it would hold a week-long programme during the upcoming anniversary of the Operation Bluestar and demand a memorial in the memory of those died in June 1984, inside the Golden Temple complex. In a statement issued here, president of the organisation H S Dhami said silence of the Akali leadership on the memorial even after 26 years of the attack was an attempt at “assassination of memory of the martyrs”. “With heavy heart we announce that in case SGPC fails to take any initiative within the next week, we would be left with no option but to stage a dharna outside the main entrance of Teja Singh Samundhari Hall for 72 hours.”

 

[ballym]

What is wrong?
It indicates that nothing is more important for these leaders to have a memorial, indirectly for Jarnail singh Bhindranwale.
Is it important than providing income, job, water,education to residents of Punjab. Is not it more important to make effort to increase women: men ratio. Lobby sikhs to put more factories in Punjab.
If Himachal and haryana have more subsidy and tax breaks then setup business on borders and effectively control the business from Punjab, indeirectly provide job to people. this will effectively make those area a part of punjab, unofficially. I can coin the term GREATER PUNJAB for that. We can keep our laguage/religious identity and control in Punjab and "effective" business control in GREATER PUNJAB!
Why do not Dhami, Bittu and Mann sit on Dharna on these issues?
Does it have some party fund angle?
may be these issues do not bring immediate funds? I am not accusing but providing a possible reason. If it is not true, prove it otherwise. I have never seen them issueing any statement on these issues.
Action indicates intentions.
After doing these things , you can always ask for a memorial for June 1984.
Make one for Delhi riots too. PS Sarna will be forced to say yes!
Go in small steps... get people's support and you can get whatevere you want. Otherwise, you are dud.... like the leaders are today.

 

[Mai Harinder Kaur]

I think many in positions of power are reluctant to put up a monument that would honour Sant Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale and his band. They overlook - or ignore - the fact that most of the people killed were simple Sikh pilgrims there for Gurpurab.

Certainly the government of India will not acknowledge the huge number killed. They went to great lengths to hide those large numbers. Not only were bodies surreptitiously removed and secretly cremated, even the shoes there were carefully removed. A friend of mine has told me of seeing box after large box of shoes removed, many of them tiny shoes of children.

Perhaps the Indian Censor Board's comment about the movie, Amu, is relevant: "Why should young people know a history that is better buried and forgotten?"

As for the SPGC, they have been sitting on their crores of rupees, allowing the families of our 1984 shaheeds - both in June and November - to live in abject poverty, forgotten and seemingly uncared for, for 26 years. It would be almost an insult to them to raise a costly memorial before supporting them. IMO, the SGPC is worse than useless.

That said, Dal Khalsa has a point. A memorial to these shaheeds is necessary, along with support for the survivors.

With the moderators' indulgence, I post here a collage I made honouring those ordinary Sikhs who achieved shaheedi in June, 1984.