In the last few years, Punjab has witnessed some major changes. From lynching to rapes and intolerance towards Hindus, few Sikhs have led Punjab to become an intolerant Punjab. Hindus, who frequently used to visit Gurudwaras are now scared of visiting as few Sikhs have maligned the image of ‘Sherra di Kom’ which once was referred to as the protector of the society.
Do the Sikh respect Hindu rituals?
The Sikh community, their principles, and their Gurus have been respected by Hindus since time immemorial. But, are the Hindu rituals still respected by the Sikhs? Well, the recent report does not suggest the same.
Punjab speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan, a baptized Sikh, visited Akal Takht Sahib on Saturday evening to apologize regarding a video. You may think that he must have committed a crime and thus was forced to apologize. But, this is not the case.
A video is circulating on social media in which he was seen performing Hindu rituals to worship a cow during a religious ceremony. While performing ‘Gau-pooja’, his turban repeatedly touched the tail of a cow. This infuriated a section of the Sikh community and Sandhwan had to apologize for the same.
Sandhwan, in his apology, said, “Along with my devotion to my own faith, I respect all religions and during a visit to a Gaushala, circumstances led to a religious priest touching the tail of a cow to my turban.”
“I have reached the position that I am in today with the blessing of the almighty. It is obvious that this incident has hurt the feelings of Sikh devotees for which I apologise. I pray to the almighty to provide me wisdom so that I can respect all religions while remaining in order of the Guru,” added Sandhwan in his apology letter.
Notably, Sandhwan, a second-time MLA from Kotakpura, is a close aid of former Indian President Giani Zail Singh. Giani, also, had to face the wrath of the Akal Takht for alleged involvement in Operation Blue Star as President of India in 1984.
Gurudwara granthi was held for raping a teenager
In what comes as a piece of disheartening news, a 65-year-old priest of a local gurdwara has been accused of raping a 15-year-old girl with mental disabilities. As per the police, the granthi had been raping the girl for the last three months. Moreover, he also made her eat contraceptives to avoid pregnancy.
However, an FIR has been registered against the accused named Sohan Singh alias Sohni.
On March 26, when the paternal aunt of the victim found the girl consuming the pills, the girl informed that Sohan provided her pills to “improve her health”. The girl also informed that the accused used to consume some pills before raping her.
Repetitive cases of be-adbi
The word ‘Sikh’ or ‘Sikhism’ depicted bravery, kindness, helpfulness. But the killing of a poor Hindu Dalit man at the Farmers Protest site, or the recent lynchings in the name of ‘sacrilege’ is slowly changing the narrative.
Read more: Why as a Hindu I am scared of visiting Gurudwaras now
A man was hacked to death over an alleged disrespect of Nishan Sahib in a Gurudwara, in Punjab’s Kapurthala. Another man was lynched after he jumped the golden grills inside the “sanctum sanctorum” of the Golden Temple. Reports suggest that the deceased had picked a sword by jumping the grills and reached near the place where a Sikh priest was reciting the hymns of the Sri Guru Granth Sahib. The two lynchings in Punjab were seen in association with the death of a Dalit man at the Singhu border, who was mutilated by the Nihangs.
Read more: She sat with her hands folded as “Shera Di Comm” slapped her incessantly
Recently, a video caught the limelight on the internet where a woman can be seen sitting on the floor with her daughter being slapped several times. Media reports claim, that she was being thrashed for smoking beedi on the premises of Golden Temple, in Punjab.
The “Shera di comm”, seemingly, has turned intolerant despite being one of the bravest and kindest communities of all. It is high time the community gets back to what it was, or it will soon end up being identified as an intolerant community.
