GurSa Singh

Are there any members of this forum who are active sewadars in the above mentioned Gurdwaras? Perhaps they can come forward and tell us the issues they are up against with the committees. We have heard from members of the congregation of the Ramgharia Gurdwara Coventry and Guru Teghbahdur Sahib Gurdwara Southampton. Ironically both these Gurdwara committees carry on with high profile events, inviting the likes of Sikh Channel to portray them as "panth sewadars". Bear in mind that the local sangat of Ramgharia Gurdwara Slough, Leeds Sikh Temple and Wednesfield Gurdwara eventually abolished the meat and sharab being served under the umbrella of the Guru Ghar. The Sangat of Leeds were able to get a specific Hukumnama from Sri Akal Takht directed at the committee of Leeds Sikh Temple instructing them to stop the manmat or be excommunicated from the Panth. There is also a suggestion from the sangat that an approach from the Charity Commission angle may provide pressure to these Committees to stop anti Sikh activities.

Why is Ramgharia hall nothing to do with you or any other Sikh? We have seen many thousands, perhaps millions of Sikhs give their life up for principle, starting from Guru Arjan Dev Ji Maharaj. You can't just disassociate from a problem in the Panth by stating it's nothing to do with you. Neither can I disassociate from a problem in the Panth by saying it's nothing to do with me. We all have a collective reponsibility to Sikhi. When those mahan shaheeds laid their lives for beadbi, justice or principle they never felt if was not their problem. I think this party hall, alcohol and meat situation has gone so far that no one sees it as a problem anymore. We are therefore all part of this promotion of the Sikh identity being boozers and party animal by emphasising these actions in our own Gurdwaras Halls. You can't keep brushing the beadbi on your own doorstep under the carpet by saying it's nothing to do with you or you have no say. We are the Khalsa, we gave our sis to Maharaj, we gave your sis to upholding Sikh principles, how can we not have a say in something so detrimental to image of Sikhi. If we can't uphold Sikh maryada or stop the titles of our Gurdwara being abused then how can we put ourselves in positions to promote Sikhi. What Sikhi will we be promoting? Sikhi is not selective, we can't pick and choose what we like and ignore what we can't deal with. It's all or nothing. These kids are going to be sitting is a Gurdwara named after Baba Jassa Singh Ramgharia. Baba Jassa Singh who stood for Sikh principles and who's misl would have destroyed the very party halls that today have their name attached to them. It's time that WE [the sangat] grew up and realised if WE aren't doing anything about the problem, then WE are part of the problem no matter how many camps or mahan kirtan darbars we do. Don't worry, I am not planning on coming down to stop the camp, I am sure the children will get a lot from it. But I would make a respectful request that the sewadars of Ramgharia Gurdwara Coventry realise the importance of the issue and take the responsiblity in abolishing the beadbi that has been going on for 20 years and not let it go on for another 20 years.

To the Committee and Sewdars of Ramgharia Gurdwara, Coventry, Apologies in advance for my abrasive attitude, but it's reached breaking point. Please address the Party Hall, meat and sharab which take place at this Gurdwara before you even think you have the right to teach children about Sikhi. Having a Vegetarian BBQ does not mean anything when you can openly consume tandoori chicken in the Ramgharia (named after panth rattan Baba Jassa Singh Ramgharia) Hall. Sewadars/Committees of Gurdwara complexes like Ramgharia Coventry have destroyed the image of Sikhi by promoting Manmat and then have the audacity to run a Gurmat camp to teach children about Sikhi. You are the ones who confused children in the first place. First things first. Please take the responsiblity of bringing back the sanctity of this specific Coventry Gurdwara, stop the abuse of Baba Jassa Singh Ramgharia's title. Maybe once that's done then go out there and promote Sikhi to the next generation.

Sorry Southampton Bhujangi, There's absolutely no interest from the UK Sikhs in taking this issue forward. Even attempted getting in touch with the likes of Joga Singh and Amrik Singh of the Federation of Sikh Organisations. No one wants to do anything about it. They see it a non-issue. In the absence of the Sikh Leadership and Sikh Channel wanting to help, can anyone else suggest another course of action?

Bhai Roop Singh is carrying such a positive portrayal of a Khalsa roop from the North of Britain to the South. Look at all the potential awareness he will raise for the Sikh roop. It's an embarrassment that the Sikh community has only managed to donate £1,000 to this charity event so far with a target of £3,000 which is a drop in the ocean for the Sikh population. Show's how self-centered and insular the vast majority of todays GurSikhs are.

Shastar Vidya inspires the Gurmukh and put's fear in the Manmukh. The demo did exactly that and therefore served it's purpose, a five year old Gurmukh instilled a sense of fear in a middle aged Judge. It's the power of the Khalsa roop which will always freak people out who have no connection to Akal Purkh.

I think we are going to see a lot more of this kind of stuff being pushed through the Indian media. Notice how the news report repeated the same image many times to drill the negative portrayal of a person in Sikh roop. Incidents like this will be used to build a mass negative generalisation of Sikhs. Currently there is a negative Sikh related story in the Indian media almost everyday and we only make a small percentage of the entire population. Someone's up to their old tricks again.

The familiar "RDX" find. Nothing changes in Punjab, if you need to take someone down then frame them with RDX. Like Pyara mentions above, this is all so familiar to us and every time we have no way of challenging the system. Watch how Sikh leadership slowly distance themselves from these arrests. There has been daily arrests of Sikh men in Punjab over the last month or so and there's been no intervention or comments from any or our leadership, dharmic or political. http://www.newsworms.com/news_detail.php?ncatId=40&pcatid=36&news_id=4131 Punjab Police Recovers 15 Kg RDX In its attempt to scuttle the terrorists' bid to revive militancy in Punjab, the Punjab police has got a big success as it has recovered 15 kgs of RDX and three detonators. The recovery was made after the five Babbar Khalsa militants, who were arrested on Wednesday, revealed during their interrogation the whereabouts of the explosives. Earlier, five terrorists were arrested on Wednesday and arms and ammunition was recovered from their possession. Police had also recovered two AK-47 rifles, five magazines, 20 live cartridges and 200 armour piercing cartridges from their possession. The arrested terrorists were identified as Pal Singh, Kulwant Singh, Gurmukh Singh, Jagtar Singh and Darshan Singh. Pal Singh was earlier staying in France and he had taken weapons training in Pakistan. All of them were trying to revive terrorism in Punjab. Pal Singh is a close associate of dreaded terrorist Narain Singh Chaura. Chaura is wanted for many crimes and he had also played an instrumental role in the Burail jail break in Chandigarh. Babbar Khalsa terrorists Jagtar Singh Hawara, Jagtar Singh Tara and Paramjit Singh Bhaura had made a sensational escape from the high-security Burail jail using a tunnel on the intervening night of Jan 21-22, 2004. During the last few months, police have arrested at least 18 dreaded terrorists and recovered explosives and arms.

The issue is not about an individuals view on bibek rehat, the issue is about acceptance, prem, pyar and respect. Without these qualities, one has to question whether they qualify to run a "Gurmat" camp. Denying someone their right to food and water is not Guru Nanak Dev Ji's Sikhi. Today, I heard a young sewadar bibi was humiliated and told that if she wanted to maintain her rehat maryada she can go home even though she lived over 100 miles away and had been helping at the camp. Some Gursikhs travelled out of the camp to a local family's house in order to eat as per their rehat. We have too many cynics running Sikh camps who lack the open mindedness and depth to project Sikhi. Many of these camps remain 2 dimensional and are nothing more than an extension of the Sunday morning diwan with little influence on the child's life. Often it's the reni and beni projected from the sewadars which has the biggest impact on the children and not the content or the organisation. To surpress that reni and beni by belittling sewaks supresses the positive experiences that the children can gain. Rehat is an individual's choice and we should encourage young rehatvaan Sikhs, not discourage them. kabeer saakath sa(n)g n keejeeai dhoorehi jaaeeai bhaag || baasan kaaro paraseeai tho kashh laagai dhaag ||131|| Kabeer, do not associate with the faithless cynics; run far away from them. If you touch a vessel stained with soot, some of the soot will stick to you. ||131||.

These are very valid comments. Some of us managed to finally get some interest from the Prabhandak committees of Singh Sabha Southall and Singh Sabha London East on the issues of beadbi. When we presented the current issues of Southampton and Gravesend to them, they were on the phone to Gravesend immediatly. However, the response we got from the committees about Southampton were along the lines of "Eh Ta Bhatray Da Kam Ih a" and they basically dismissed the issue. This may be off topic. I agree with the above comments, that our people are selective in deciding what is an issue or not. When taking things into context, I think most of us know the issues of Party Halls, Meat, Alcohol, Smoking within the buildings of Gurdwaras far outweighs other current issues in the UK. We are stuck in a web of castes and prejudices , which acts as shield for those committees and sangat who are able carry on abusing the Gurdwara. Unless people snap out of it, the beadbis will carry on under the banner of a "Bhatra", "Ramgharia" or "Ravidasi" Gurdwara. If you look at the list of the 15 Gurdwaras where beadbi happens, then 6 fall under Ramgharia, 2 fall under Bhatra and 1 falls under Ravidassi. Therefore we also have an issue where the isolation of the castes acts as a hedge for these committees to carry on unchallenged.

According to the feedback given to me by the prabhandak committees of Singh Sabha Southall and Singh Sabha London East (who contacted Gravesend Gurdwara about the situation), this was cancelled. Also, discussions with some of the elder Gravesend Singhs gave confirmation that this will not go ahead. Did this actually then go ahead?

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/Akal-Takht-summons-Sarna-for--abusing--riot-victims--counsel/650014 Akal Takht summons Sarna for ‘abusing’ riot victims’ counsel Strong reactions, marked with anger and shock, were witnessed among Sikh circles to the sudden announcement by 1984 anti-Sikh riot victims’ counsel H S Phoolka to withdraw from all cases pending in different courts. An emergency meeting was convened at the Akal Takht on Tuesday where Jathedar Giani Gurbachan Singh took Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee chief Paramjit Singh Sarna and his brother Harvinder Singh Sarna to task for “making derogatory remarks” against Phoolka and summoned them to the highest temporal seat of Sikhs on July 26 to explain their stand. Phoolka shot off a communiqué to the Akal Takht, accusing Sarna brothers of “unleashing false propaganda”, “issuing threats” and “using abusive language” against him. Phoolka said he had been fighting the cases without any personal profit for the last 26 years, “despite pressures and interventions”. “It is regrettable that Sarna brothers forced Phoolka, whom the whole community holds in high esteem for his services to the (Sikh) Panth, to take this extreme step. We are shocked. So many queries are pouring in from Sikhs all over the world,” said Gurbachan Singh. He said Sarna had committed a “religious misconduct”. “We have summoned both Sarna brothers to appear before us and explain their stand, following which suitable action will be taken against them,” said the jathedar. If found guilty, Sarna brothers may even face expulsion from the Panth. Phoolka said in the letter that the Sarnas had been close to Congress leaders and they were acting against him on the directions of the party as most of the accused were senior leaders of the party, including Sajjan Kumar and Jagdish Tytler. “The Sarna brothers have started a conspiracy to divert my attention to save the Congress leaders. When I went to meet Sarna in his DSGMC office in Delhi, asking him why a false propaganda against me had been initiated, he used abusive language and misbehaved with me,” he wrote. Shiromani Gurudwara Parbandhak Committee chief Avtar Singh Makkar, who met the Akal Takht jathedar on Tuesday, said the Sarna brothers were “agents of the Congress” and had worked against the interests of the religion. On the other hand, Sarna said he was going abroad shortly on a business trip and might not be able to appear before the Akal Takht on the given date. “I will appear before the Takht later and explain my stand,” he told The Indian Express from Delhi, adding that he would request the Takht to postpone his appearance. Sarna said he never misbehaved with Phoolka and all allegations levelled by the latter were false and baseless. New Delhi: After the Akal Takht’s decision was conveyed to him in the evening, H S Phoolka decided to stay on. “I got a call from the jathedar of Akal Takht Sahib and could not say no to his wishes for the moment. Sarna has been summoned on Monday to explain his actions and I have decided to wait till then. I do not want the cases to suffer due an instantaneous decision and I have complete faith in the Akal Takht,” he said. Phoolka said he was compelled to think of giving up the cases as he had been “humiliated” by Sarna at a meeting in front of several other prominent members of the Sikh community on July 17 . Sarna reportedly alleged that when Phoolka appeared before the Justice G T Nanavati Commission on behalf of the victims from 2000 to 2004, DSGMC had spent Rs 1.09 crore on the administrative expenses incurred by his team. This, Sarna alleged, proved to be a waste as no benefit came out of it to the Sikhs.

After 2 discussions with different committee members on the other end of the phone, the following is confirmed. -President Jaspal Dhesi is currently in India and the acting president is Swarn Singh. Jaspal Dhesi is allegedly opposed to the setting up of the cinema screen on the Gurdwara grounds but is "powerless" as he is in India. -The Prabhandak committee are passing the buck on to a "Cultural Committee" who made the decision and who are planning a fortnightly screening of a Bollywood blockbuster at the Gurdwara Sahib. -The committee member I spoke to said it's unlikely they can cancel the screening on Wed 21 Jul as it's too late and although he agreed it was not Gurmat to use the Gurdwara as a cinema, it is too late to change anything and refund money. The Gurdwara committee seem confused on who is meant to be running the Gurdwara and seem to have diluted their control to sub committees. What is needed is pressure from the rest of the Sangat. From the relaxed attitude of the committee members, I don't believe many people have been in touch with them yet. Please call them on Tel. 01474 350611 or 01474 534121 and maturely speak to them to make them realise it's a larger issue than they foolishly believe. -

http://www.gurunanakdarbar.org/index.html Contact Details Guru Nanak Darbar Gurudwara Clarence Place Gravesend DA12 1LD Tel. 01474 350611 or 01474 534121 I believe the "Khalistan Goverment in Exile" was based in Gravesend as well some prominent members of the Akhand Kirtani Jatha, Sikh Federation and even some claiming to be from Nihang Dals. Perhaps they can step forward and use their influence over Dhesi and his committee. It's time to start approaching our elders and getting them to step up to taking the lead in resolving situations like this before it ends up becoming some kind of fiasco. The last thing this Gurdwara committee need is a high profile confrontation between Sholay fans and Sikhs from around the country who are likely to gather at the Gurdwara on that day.

The following video on youtube shows the sewadars of the above mentioned Southampton Gurdwara performing the annual Nishan Sahib Sewa. It's worth noting that the same "Langar" hall where the bacon, sausages and eggs are fried is used to changed the chola of the Nishan Sahib. Once again, it cannot be stressed that the conduct of this committee, who have been following their own manmat maryada for many years, needs to be addressed at a national panthic level. If our UK Panthic leadership feel we deserve any form of a Sikh sovereign state in Punjab or a Khalistan then the dismissal of gross beadbi issues in the UK Sikh community makes their cause hypocritical and void. There can be no claim on Sikh Sovereignty if there is no focus on core Sikh Principles. There are currently 15 UK Gurdwaras (mentioned above) which need urgent addressing by the Leadership and local Sangat. The buck cannot be passed by anyone anymore and if the committees carry on allowing meat and alcohol on the Gurdwara premises (inc. associated party halls) then the panth needs to act by outcasting these people.

Vaheguru Ji Ka Khalsa Vaheguru Ji Ki Fateh! Well said. This is not a caste issue, this is a Sikh issue and we have to realise this. It's now time to step up the game and drag our Sikh leaders by the arm to these Gurdwaras where meat and alcohol are allowed and force them to do something. The sangat need to claim Sikhi back from these manmat anti-Sikh committees who have abused their positions for too long now. 15 Uk Gurdwara committees abuse Sikh principles and Southampton is one of them.

If this discussion gets no further than caste then we have no chance of changing this practice. Please now step forward and take personal responsiblility of clearing the beadbi that takes place in this Gurdwara and the 14 other UK Gurdwaras which promote meat and alcohol on Gurdwara premises (including party halls). Southampton Gurdwara Tegh Bahadur Sahib Bhatra Sabha 8 Clovelly Road, Southampton SO2 0AU 02380 224 744 London Ramgarhia Sikh Association Masons Hill, Woolwich, London, SE18 6EJ 020 8854 1786 Swindon Shri Guru Nanak Gurdwara Kembrey Street Swindon, SN2 8AZ Essex Sikh Temple (Grays), 6 Maidstone Road, Grays, Essex, RM17 6NF. 01375 376 086 Birmingham Ramgharia Sikh Temple 6-9 Graham Street, Birmingham, B1 3LA 0121 236 5435 Birmingham Ramgarhia Gurdwara 27-29 Waverley Road Small Heath Birmingham B10 OHG 0121 771 0680 Coventry Ramgharia Gurdwara Coventry 1103 Foleshill Road Coventry CV6 6EP 024 7666 3048 Leicester Ramgarhia Gurdwara Leicester 51 Meynell Road Leicester LE5 3NE 0116 221 6187 Dudley Sri Guru Nanak Singh Sabha Gurdwara 118 Wellington Road, Dudley, West Midlands DY1 01384 253 054 Wolverhampton GURU RAVIDASS GURDWARA 181 Dudley Road, Wolverhampton. WV2 3RD Telephone: 01902 822 958 Telford Guru Nanak Gurdwara 1 Hadley Park Road, Hadley, Telford, Shropshire Leeds Ramgharia Board Leeds. 8-10 Chapeltown Road, Chapeltown,. Leeds, LS7 3AP. Tel: 0113 262 5427 Sunderland Guru Gobind Sikh Temple (Sunderland Sikh Association) Ashbrooke Hall, The Cloisters, Sunderland, County Durham SR2 7ED 0191 5672939 Huddersfield Guru Nanak Gurdwara Prospect Street Huddersfield HD1 2NK (01484) 423773 Cardiff Nanak Darbar Bhat Sikh Temple 18 Copper Town, Adamstown, Cardiff South Glamorgan Wales

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/belief/2010/jul/06/afghanistan-sikhs-persecution Afghan Sikhs: forgotten victims They suffered under the mujahideen and the Taliban – but Afghan Sikhs still feel a strong bond with the country by Nushin Arbabzadah guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 6 July 2010 10.00 BST Few people outside Afghanistan are aware of the Afghan Sikh community: a little-known, inconspicuous religious minority whose mass exodus from Afghanistan began with the coming to power of the mujahideen in 1992. The decision to leave Afghanistan at that particular juncture made sense. After all, the new rulers had an established reputation for religious intolerance. The collapse of the Soviet-backed regime had left Afghan Sikhs in a vulnerable position. With their black dastar headgear and their neat but untrimmed beards, they stood out from the Muslim crowd, and became an easily identifiable target for crime and harassment. A community of traders with business contacts stretching from Afghan cities to India, Japan and Korea, the Sikhs were perceived as wealthy and this perception, in turn, made them a key target for kidnapping gangs. Even during the famously rigid rule of the Taliban, members of the Sikh community were kidnapped for ransom, and according to one trusted source, the kidnappers included Taliban. One Sikh family, for example, lost six members during the Taliban rule, having failed to collect the required ransom to secure the release of relatives. In many ways, the Sikh community's experience of loss and forced migration had much in common with that of their Muslim counterparts. Families were torn apart and ended up stranded in refugee camps before eventually settling in whichever country was ready to let them in. But the Sikhs' distinct religious identity came with additional hardships that affected both those who had been left behind in Afghanistan and those struggling to survive abroad. In Afghanistan, the mujahideen, and later the Taliban, elevated ordinary Afghans' intolerance of non-Muslims to the level of official state policy – depriving the Sikhs of state protection, the only protection that the community have ever had in recent Afghan history. Subsequently, the Sikhs were denied their basic rights, including the right to bury their dead in line with the requirements of their faith. Religious intolerance, especially towards Sikhism and Hinduism, is a deeply ingrained part of Afghan national identity which was formulated in opposition to the Hindus and Sikhs of India. Often, it takes exile and exposure to racism to make mainstream Muslim Afghans realise just how unfair society has been towards the Sikh community. "It was only when I came to England that I realised that our attitude towards our Sikhs had been wrong," said a young Muslim Afghan whom I met in London's Southall market recently. With the exception of a restaurant and a music shop, the market is run almost entirely by Afghan Sikhs. Like most Afghans, the young Muslim was suspicious of my motives for asking questions and refused to let me interview him. Instead he introduced me to an Afghan Sikh friend who was the owner of a small shop, jam-packed with colourful shiny fabrics, South Asian-style garments and bejewelled sandals. "Talk to Harpal Singh, our community leader. He knows everything," the shopkeeper advised. Such delegation of authority to a community leader, which often results in block voting during elections, is widespread in South Asia, and the Afghan Sikh community has replicated this pattern in British exile. But aside from the issue of delegation of authority, the Sikhs' fear of speaking out was striking. Decades if not centuries of oppression have obviously left their mark on this community, and their fear manifests itself in other ways, too. Unlike most Afghans, who tend to be unreserved and gregarious, the Afghan Sikhs speak in a quiet voice. Their manner of conversation to non-Sikhs is structured to avoid confrontation and often begins with formulations of reassurance. "We never had problems with the people in Afghanistan," said Harpal Singh. That he was not telling the full truth was clear. After all, in my own school in Kabul, our Sikh classmate was regularly pressured to convert to Islam and even in present-day Afghanistan, Sikh children stay at home and are deprived of education because of widespread harassment at schools. Harpal Singh offered me what sounded like a standard community leader's speech. The community was peaceful, had no problems with other Afghans or the British people. He then told me about the Sikhs' specific problem of having to authenticate their Afghan identity when arriving in England or other western countries. The authentication process involves speaking Dari and knowledge of the city they lived in before exile. Given that the community's children often grew up in refugee camps outside Afghanistan, young Afghan Sikhs sometimes no longer speak Dari, being fluent only in their mother tongue, Punjabi. This, in turn, adds to the complication of corroborating their identity outside Afghanistan. "But these days, the British no longer believe that we are oppressed, that we are still not allowed to bury our dead in line with our religious regulations," said another Sikh shopkeeper on condition of anonymity. "The British say they are running the country, and know what's happening there." I asked him whether there was anything he could do about this. He shrugged and said: "I have letters of my family from Kabul but the British say they know what's happening there." Despite daily harassment in Afghanistan and the additional complications that stem from being Afghan Sikhs abroad, the community still feels a powerful sense of belonging to Afghanistan and its members are known to have helped non-Sikh Afghans make a living by setting up businesses in the UK. It is this solid loyalty to Afghanistan and touching solidarity with non-Sikh Afghans that dismantles the popular myth that only Islam can create unity among Afghans. Being Afghan is about more than religion, and as possibly the country's oldest inhabitants, the Afghan Sikhs have always known this much.

Next weekend Singh Sabha London East are holding elections. It's short notice now, still the sangat can give it a go If you live in the East London/Essex area (including postcodes E12 and IG1), you can register yourself, encourage your friends and your family to vote. You can nominate someone as a candidate to stand in the elections by the end of today 6pm. Bring a passport photograph of yourself and your passport/driving license and proof of address. Failing this there needs to be a 2 year build of a group of Gursikhs willing to take the Gurdwara over by the next elections of 2012. First things first, Amritdhari youth need to start regularly attending this Gurdwara, involving themselves in all types of sewa from Raul sewa to Kitchen sewa. Through this humble presence and impact can be made in the running of the Gurdwara. The Gurdwara has a massive potential as there's a large footflow of youth due to the Gym, Gatka and other activities. However, there needs to be more of an Amritdhari youth presence to guide and inspire the large numbers of youth who attend this Gurdwara on a daily basis. Key times are 4pm to 9pm Mon-Fri and Sunday all day. If people on sikhsangat.com want to fight "beadbi", please come forward from behind the PCs and help make the change. Stop passing the responsibility onto others and expecting others to do something by pointing fingers or blaming each other. Time to grow up and represent Sikhi in your Gurdwaras and not isolating yourself in small insular groups cut off from the mainstream. Vaheguru Ji Ka Khalsa Vaheguru Ji Ki Fateh!

If we bring it down to a job then compared to the Christian, Jewish, Hindu and Muslim clergy it's pretty poor. A vicar averages £30k. The average salary for a Vicar in the UK is: £30,100 Job profile for a Vicar Preparing and leading Sunday church services, visiting the sick, preach sermons and lead the chuch in mission and out reach to the local community. Chair various church and community comittees. Conduct Baptisms, weddings and funerals. Facilitate relavant youthwork and wider community involvement such as drop ins and the like. Pioneers fresh expressions of worship for the current generation. Often act as curator for an old building overseeing its care and repair. - Vicar Job Profile

There's always opportunity to change a committee through voting them out and I believe that Singh Sabha London East's committee elections are in the coming weeks. There's even a bigger opportunity to form a party and legitimatly get voted into taking a Gurdwara over. Sadly, I think we as the youth lack commitment and the unity that these elder prabhandaks seem to have in forming a committee to run a Gurdwara. Boycotting a Gurdwara can be counter-productive and result in no change. Currently the Seven Kings Guru Ghar has a large foot flow of youth due to the gym, gatka, santheia, punjabi, tanti-saaj classes, simran and workshops, probably the largest gathering of youth in the East London area on a weekly basis. It has a large influence in the local Sikh youths lives and many are connected to Sikhi through the activities in the Gurdwara. It's also worth noting that the committee have not arranged these youth activities, youth themselves carry out all of these weekly Gurmat activities with little support from the committee, the committee often act as obstacles in these activities. It's therefore, so important that local sangat register themselves to vote in their local guru ghars so that the right people are selected to take on the responsibility of the Gurdwara. Gursikhs can influence change in the Gurdwara committee's through their voting rights and can use them as bargaining tools. Doing general sewa in Gurdwaras also has a massive impact. In this case I don't know if the party standing against the current committee are any better, but for the sake of change I would suggest voting for them.

A really informative thread. Again something that needs to be addressed at a national level, taken forward by the newly self-appointed national gurdwara committee who appear to be formalising themselves via the Sikh Channel. The development of the UK sangat is directly suffering as a result of this "system" the UK Gurdwara committees use in it's abuse and selection of Granthis and Gianis.

The list can be passed on to Sri Akal Takht and other prominent Jathebhandi's for their action. In the past Singhs from UK have had personal meetings with the previous Jathedar Joginder Singh Vedanti, SGPC Jathedar Avtaar Singh Makkar, Current Jathedar Gurbachan Singh as well as other prominent Gursikhs. All have asked for a full list of all the anti-Sikh Gurdwara committees who promote the meat and alcohol on their premises rather than the "piecemeal" approach we have taken in the past.

Please can you provide full address and details. This thread can be so helpful as there has never been a definitive list of Gurdwaras with Party Halls in UK who are going against Sikh Maryada and Sri Akal Takht Sahib If the original poster can do the sewa of updating/editing the top of this thread everytime more info is posted, then we can really build up the list. The following are a definite and the committee may now be purchasing the pub round the corner too in order to expand the "facilites" their party hall can offer Ramgharia Gurdwara Coventry 1103 Foleshill Road Coventry CV6 6EP 024 7666 3048 http://www.ramgarhiagurdwara.com/

The Grays Gurdwara issue was addressed live on the stage at todays 1984 Remembrance gathering at Trafalgar Square in front of over 5000 Sikhs who had travelled from around the country, as well as the Sikh media.