Chandigarh – As the delegates representing your country are set to visit Amritsar from 15-17 March as part of the side summit of G-20, Dal Khalsa takes this opportunity to present an overview of the social and political life of the region and its peoples from the Sikh perspective.
As you may be aware, irrespective of the electoral developments in the state, the people of Punjab are engaged in a struggle for the right to self-determination and they look towards the international community with the hope to enable the fulfillment of their rightful aspirations.
When delegates from your country arrive in Amritsar and visit the Darbar Sahib, popularly known as the Golden Temple, the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee that manages the historic Sikh shrines in Punjab, will surely extend a warm welcome on behalf of the Sikh community.
The Darbar Sahib and the Akal Takht Sahib in its precincts is a state within a state -this unique theo-political status is unparalleled and is a pointer to the unique and distinct identity of the Sikhs, whose homeland is the Punjab.
We also take this opportunity to present our understanding of the working of the Group of Twenty -G20, in the context of the political dynamics of the region and how India, with its presidency of the G-20 this year, must view and work for the avowed aim of the body “to resolve the global economic crisis.”
From a trade perspective, the Punjab has been a traditional gateway to Central Asia, with Amritsar as the dry port of the region. This has a historical angle too. The Sikh Gurus constructed the Darbar Sahib and other historical religious shrines -Gurdwaras in a way that these became religious, social, economic, cultural and political centers of activity.
We are well aware that the discussions during the G-20 summit will focus on trade, energy, climate change, education, health, security and economic issues amongst the 19 member countries and the European Union. The point that we seek to emphasize is that like G-7, even the G-20, especially with its rotational presidency, has not been able to delve into the root causes of discontinuity and hindrances to trade and commerce between member countries.
While many countries, including India, emphasize a conducive environment for economic progress, it is our perspective that most of the countries including India have failed to see that while peace and progress go hand in hand, peace follows justice and equity.
The city of Amritsar has been the traditional fulcrum of Sikh religious and political activity. India has never respected this position. Since the last seven decades and more, India has not only used its military bulwark to attack the Darbar Sahib and the Akal Takht Sahib but has used its full might to undermine and damage its religious, political and regional significance, within the community and to the world at large.
It is our considered view that efforts to make the G-20 jamboree succeed will crash at the altar of respect for human rights. The millions that the state government of Punjab and the Union government of India will spend for the main Summit and the few hundred side-summits like the one in Amritsar shall not bear fruit as it is clearly no more than a slick exercise to increase optics for the celebration of the temporary presidency of India.
The whole Indian game is a larger design to enhance its image in the face of the stark realities portrayed in various indices by Indian and international bodies.
India has a lot to answer. Torture is rampant. Jail, not bail is the norm. India has unequal norms and different sets of rules for political prisoners. Sikh political prisoners continue to languish in prisons even after the completion of their sentence. Dissent is equated with terrorism. Journalists, students, and human rights defenders are in preventive detentions.
Documentaries, like the BBC documentary critical of the role of Narendra Modi during the Gujarat massacre in 2002, are banned. The Indian Government engineered Income Tax raids on BBC offices in vengeance. Justice for nationalities, indigenous peoples, and minorities is elusive. A climate of hate and fear has laid an overarching blanket on people’s lives. In 2022, India topped the list of countries that ordered internet shutdowns. The present-day right-wing Hindutva government’s march towards a Hindu India is palpable.
From Kashmir to Nagaland, from Punjab to Tamil Nadu, India is systematically trampling the democratic rights of the people using the heavy might of the police, para-military, and the Indian Armed Forces. The threat of arrest under archaic and draconian laws is real as many political activists continue to be behind bars. Zero tolerance for dissent has rendered Kashmir without a voice. The Modi dispensation is refusing to implement the Naga peace accord signed by the Government of India with the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN) on 3 August 2015.
The loot of natural resources of the State of Punjab goes on unmitigated. In a brazen manner, the Union government’s appointed Governor of Punjab -Banwarilal Purohit has threatened physical violence against voices of dissent and those seeking the right to self-determination. Big Brother in Delhi is snooping over social media, banning social media groups and individuals at the drop of a hat. Using the nationalistic media, a new narrative of vengeance against the Sikhs is being floated. All questions relating to the rights of people are brushed under the carpet in the name of unity and territorial integrity of the country. Unmistakably, the people of Punjab are at the receiving end of all of this.
Dal Khalsa believes that there is a need for realization within G-20 countries as to how disrespect for democratic norms and human rights is a stumbling block for progress.
May all people enjoy their civil, economic, social, and political rights without fear or favour. While in Amritsar, when representatives of your country will visit the Golden Temple, ask them to take a moment to ponder over this iteration.