Call ’84 Riots ‘Genocide,’ High Priests Tell Sikhs

[Azaad]

The five Sikh high priests have directed Sikhs, Sikh organisations and Sikh media organisations across the world to call the November 1984 events as genocide of Sikhs and not merely as riots or anti-Sikh riots.

“Sikhs were killed under a well-planned conspiracy across 110 cities and 18 states. So the act was nothing short of a genocide and it should be called by all Sikhs across the world. These were not mere riots. Real figures about the large-scale inhuman act have come to the fore for unrelenting efforts of the US-based International Human Rights Organisation’s legal adviser Gurpatwant Singh Pannu. The Sikhs for Justice is an Akal Takht- recognised Sikh advocacy group and it was due to efforts of this organisation that a petition for the declaration of the 1984 events as genocide could be presented in Canadian Parliament. Over 25 years have passed, but the 1984 victims are still awaiting justice,” said the Jathedar.

Meanwhile, the five Sikh high priests, led by Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Gurbachan Singh, have also made it clear that only those Sikhs or priests could perform and supervise the task of partaking of ‘Amrit ‘by others who had full knowledge of the Sikh religion and who could verbally recite ‘Japuji Sahib’, ‘Savviye’, ‘ Benti Chaupai’, and ‘Anand Sahib’.

“The Sikh Sangat should not partake of Amrit from anyone who fails to qualify the laid down conditions and who cannot recite Sikh scriptures verbally,” said Giani Gurbachan Singh after addressing a meeting of the Sikh high priests.

Besides, taking a serious note of describing ‘Shabads’ as songs in respect of caller tones, the high priests have warned all mobile companies not to describe “shabads” as mere songs in their recorded messages and other conversation. He said a committee would be set up to look into the issue of Rochester Gurdwara (US) where the entry of Amritdhari Sikhs was banned by a court.

[GuruManeyoGranth]

Meanwhile, the five Sikh high priests, led by Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Gurbachan Singh, have also made it clear that only those Sikhs or priests could perform and supervise the task of partaking of ‘Amrit ‘by others who had full knowledge of the Sikh religion and who could verbally recite ‘Japuji Sahib’, ‘Savviye’, ‘ Benti Chaupai’, and ‘Anand Sahib’.

Jaap Sahib is not included. Is this an editorial oversight?

Waheguroo

[GoliMaro]

Hindustan Times: Link Here

A global human rights advocacy group working for Sikh rights on Thursday called for international support after the Sikh high priests in Amritsar announced that the 1984 anti-Sikh riots across would now be called a 'genocide'. Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, US-based International Human Rights Organisation's (IHRO) attorney in New York, sought international support to get the 1984 carnage of Sikhs declared globally as a genocide. The five Sikh high priests, led by chief of the Akal Takht, the highest temporal seat of Sikh religion, Gurbachan Singh, met in Sikh holy city of Amritsar, 250 km from here, Wednesday and announced that Sikhs should now call the 1984 anti-Sikh riots a 'genocide'.

Pannun said: "The central religious authority of Sikhs - the Jathedars of the Takhts - five high priests have declared that the November 1984 killings of Sikhs in India, in which thousands of innocent Sikhs were killed across 18 states and more than 100 cities was a genocide."

"According to Giyani Gurbachan Singh, Akal Takht Jathedar, the targeted and planned killing of Sikhs and attacks on gurdwaras was a direct attack on the Sikh religion itself," he added.

"The declaration from Akal Takht is very significant because it brings finality for the Sikhs as to whether the killings were genocide or not. We will seek global support to get it declared as a genocide internationally," he added.

The Akal Takht directed the Sikh community, Sikh organisations, media and other groups around the world to call November 1984 'Sikh Genocide' and to support Sikhs for justice in their efforts to get the genocide recognised internationally.

"Over 25 years have passed, but the 1984 victims are still awaiting justice," the Akal Takht chief said.

Over 6,000 Sikhs were mercilessly killed by mobs following the assassination of then prime minister India Gandhi by her two Sikh bodyguards at her official residence in New Delhi Oct 31, 1984.