Hoshiarpur (May 07, 2010): The Dal Khalsa will undertake a Khalsa Raj Parade from Chaparchiri to Sirhind to mark the tercentenary of Baba Banda Singh Bahadur, the first Sikh warrior who is credited with establishing the sovereign Sikh rule on May 12.
Addressing the media persons over here, the party head H S Dhami and spokesperson Kanwarpal Singh said jatha of hundreds of Sikh youths on vehicles and motorcycles would start from the place Baba Banda Singh defeated and killed the Governor of Sirhind Wazir Khan to end his tyrannical rule. “The march would conclude at Sirhind where Baba Banda Singh unfurled the Saffron Nishan Sahib and established the first rule of Sikhs”.
Courting a new controversy, they called the former chief minister Beant Singh as modern day Wazir Khan in whose regime killings of Sikh youth were order of the day. They said Dilawar Singh assassinated him to end his tyrannical rule in Punjab. Hence, they would honour Dilawar Singh, a martyr with ‘Baba Banda Singh Bahadur Bravery Award’.
Elaborating the plans of the function, they said and a simple ceremony would be performed to salute the Sikh flag. They said that families of those whose kin and kith contributed in the recent Sikh struggle would also participate in the march. They said representatives of Khalsa Action Committee, SAD (Panch Pardani), Sikh Students Federation, Sikh Youth of Punjab and Shiromani Khalsa Panchayat would also be part of the function. They said the function has a support of UK based Council of Khalistan also.
The Parade will bolster the morale of the youth who have gone astray from Sikh religious ethos, they said. “It would also be a befitting reply to all those forces and individuals who had been attempting to project Baba Banda Singh Bahadur as “Bairagi” to drag him into Hindu fold”.
They criticized the Akali leadership for inviting BJP and Congress leadership in celebrating the tercentenary celebrations. To invite and share dais with those who were deadly against the concept and ideology of Sikh rule was ridiculous and against the collective aspirations of the community.
An international conference by Council of Khalistan and Dal Khalsa (UK unit) will also be jointly organized on May 9 at Birmingham (UK) gurdwara to mark the tercentenary of Sikh rule, they added.
Dr Manjinder Singh, Sarbjit Singh Ghuman, Ranbir Singh were also present on the occasion.