Pakistan Set To Declare Panja Sahib As Holy City

[Mehtab Singh 3,907]

CHANDIGARH: The Pakistan government has decided to declare 'Panja Sahib' a holy city and would initiate efforts to sort out all issues related to the welfare of the Sikhs living at the pilgrimage site.

This was stated by the President of Pak-Indo friendship association and legal consulate ministry of interior government of Pakistan Arif Chaudhry, during his meeting with the Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal here, an official release said here.

Panja Sahib is believed to house a rock having the hand print of Guru Nanak, founder of Sikh religion, and is a popular pilgrimage spot for Sikhs across the world.

Chaudhary also invited Badal to Pakistan to attend a function organized by the Association on this occasion, the schedule of which would be finalized as per his convenience.

Accepting the invitation, Badal said that he had always championed the cause for further strengthening bilateral ties between India and Pakistan through opening Hussainiwal and Fazilka border that would give impetus to trade.

He hoped with the formation of the new government in Pakistan, the bilateral relations would further improve and new business and cultural exchange avenues would be worked out through promoting people to people contact programmes.

The Pakistan official said that the forum would also try to sort out all issues related to the welfare of Sikhs living at Panja Sahib.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/pakistan/Pak-set-to-declare-Panja-Sahib-as-holy-city/articleshow/20590054.cms

[chatanga 1,058]

good news, but more effort has to be made on rescuing the vanishing Sikh heritage in Pakistan. That is more important than holy status, status given to Panja Sahib.

[singh135 241]

Whereas India can't give Amritsar holy status

[JasSinghKhalsa 764]

Whereas India can't give Amritsar holy status

Before blaming India, let's ask Punjab Govt. and Badal's!

[singh135 241]

Before blaming India, let's ask Punjab Govt. and Badal's!

yeh well good luck asking Badal..let us know how that turns out.

[Deletedkp 26]

CHANDIGARH: The Pakistan government has decided to declare 'Panja Sahib' a holy city and would initiate efforts to sort out all issues related to the welfare of the Sikhs living at the pilgrimage site.

This was stated by the President of Pak-Indo friendship association and legal consulate ministry of interior government of Pakistan Arif Chaudhry, during his meeting with the Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal here, an official release said here.

Panja Sahib is believed to house a rock having the hand print of Guru Nanak, founder of Sikh religion, and is a popular pilgrimage spot for Sikhs across the world.

Chaudhary also invited Badal to Pakistan to attend a function organized by the Association on this occasion, the schedule of which would be finalized as per his convenience.

Accepting the invitation, Badal said that he had always championed the cause for further strengthening bilateral ties between India and Pakistan through opening Hussainiwal and Fazilka border that would give impetus to trade.

He hoped with the formation of the new government in Pakistan, the bilateral relations would further improve and new business and cultural exchange avenues would be worked out through promoting people to people contact programmes.

The Pakistan official said that the forum would also try to sort out all issues related to the welfare of Sikhs living at Panja Sahib.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/pakistan/Pak-set-to-declare-Panja-Sahib-as-holy-city/articleshow/20590054.cms

That's fantastic news if Pakistan are going ahead with this but what are their motives behind it?

How are the Pakistan government going sort out all issues related to the welfare of Sikhs living at Panja Sahib?

[isingh1699 209]

That's fantastic news if Pakistan are going ahead with this but what are their motives behind it?

How are the Pakistan government going sort out all issues related to the welfare of Sikhs living at Panja Sahib?

Bro the motives of Pakistan government are pretty clear.

They want to dupe innocent Sikhs into wasting there money travelling there so that the local Pakistani businessmen can profit.

We don't have enough money to help our own poor people but when it comes to holidays we are always down with that.

Nothing is gana happen for the welfare of local Sikhs when it was state policy to ethnically cleanse millions of Sikhs out of Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Most of the land from Pakistan Gurdwara's has been stolen too but they do this move + make easy profits off Sikhs

[Jonny101 4,374]

Bro the motives of Pakistan government are pretty clear.

They want to dupe innocent Sikhs into wasting there money travelling there so that the local Pakistani businessmen can profit.

We don't have enough money to help our own poor people but when it comes to holidays we are always down with that.

Nothing is gana happen for the welfare of local Sikhs when it was state policy to ethnically cleanse millions of Sikhs out of Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Most of the land from Pakistan Gurdwara's has been stolen too but they do this move + make easy profits off Sikhs

What ever the motive, still it's better than nothing. Sikhs in Pakistan are still treated better than the Christians and Hindus of Pakistan. Let's learn to appreciate good gestures from the other side rather than trying to annoy the other side so much that we end up losing what little we have left.

[esingh 46]

Good news. Will other Sikh heritage sites be given similar status?

Anyway, a truly beautiful place. The video starts from 2.15 properly.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eRyRn97taDM

[TandooriSingh 46]

I don't even know why Sikhs still bother to LIVE in Pakistan.

Pakistan can't even protect Shia Muslims from constant bombings and murders, or Muslim Pakistani politicians from assassinations. They can't even provide their people with electricity or food (not like India is much better...)

How exactly can they ever be expected to protect Sikhs and these holy sites? Declaring them holy sites just makes them a target.

Kidnappings and forced conversions, rapes, beheadings, Taliban trying to force anyone who isn't Muslim to pay the Jizya tax in the areas they control. Gurdwara's being stolen from Sikhs by criminal gangs or the government itself. This is the reality of their lives.

I mean sure it's home, but how much worse can it get before YOU NEED TO FREAKING MOVE HOUSE?

Frankly I think Sikhs just need to cut our losses in Pakistan for now. Go to Punjab where we are the majority, use our skills to fix its many problems and make it the best it can possibly be. The same goes for Afghan Sikhs.

[PakistaniPunjabi01 29]

I don't even know why Sikhs still bother to LIVE in Pakistan.

Pakistan can't even protect Shia Muslims from constant bombings and murders, or Muslim Pakistani politicians from assassinations. They can't even provide their people with electricity or food (not like India is much better...)

How exactly can they ever be expected to protect Sikhs and these holy sites? Declaring them holy sites just makes them a target.

Kidnappings and forced conversions, rapes, beheadings, Taliban trying to force anyone who isn't Muslim to pay the Jizya tax in the areas they control. Gurdwara's being stolen from Sikhs by criminal gangs or the government itself. This is the reality of their lives.

I mean sure it's home, but how much worse can it get before YOU NEED TO FREAKING MOVE HOUSE?

Frankly I think Sikhs just need to cut our losses in Pakistan for now. Go to Punjab where we are the majority, use our skills to fix its many problems and make it the best it can possibly be. The same goes for Afghan Sikhs.

To be honest : Sikhs in Pakistan live a BETTER life than Sikhs in India.

Islamic Fundamentalists are at war with everyone...no one is targeting Sikhs...tell me even if 50 Sikhs died in last 10 years of war? Over-whelming majority of victims of TTP terrorism are Muslims...Countries go through the cycles of civil unrest/war...Pakistan is no exception. Atleast Pakistani state did not murder 30,000+ Sikhs like Indian state did...nor did we attack Sikh holiest sites....

Now you understand why Sikhs choose to live in Pakistan?

I don't understand why Indian Sikhs choose to live in India where their religion is not even recognized.

Whats with all this negativity? If Pakistan is doing something right, then appreciate it..rather than this negativity....

[isingh1699 209]

To be honest : Sikhs in Pakistan live a BETTER life than Sikhs in India.

I'm no fan of India's but no Sikh will ever be the prime minister of Paksitan and no Sikh will ever lead the Pakistan Army and never will any Sikh be the chief minister of Pakistani Punjab.

Now you understand why Sikhs choose to live in Pakistan?

They don't really choose to live there. Why would anyone live in a country where 20% of the Sikh population was murdered in 1947.

It's more a case that the GOI makes it difficult for them to come to East Punjab and they lack the resouces to shift

I don't understand why Indian Sikhs choose to live in India where their religion is not even recognized.

The Sikh Marriage Act is being done and Budhhists, Jains and Sikhs are being recognised as non-Hindu's unlike the Mughal + British + 1950 constitution definitions of a Hindu meaning all non-Muslim residents of India. We Sikhs exist regardless of anybody's recognition or attempts to crush us. We have no inferiority complex of the kind u imagine. 1 on 1 we know we are. We are a minority but in the bigger picture globally so are Muslims. And one day who knows maybe all Punjabi's can re-unite as one nation in a monotheistic creed which works for the benefit of all faiths as opposed to only the Ummah and truly permits no (Qureshi) partners with God.

Whats with all this negativity? If Pakistan is doing something right, then appreciate it..rather than this negativity....

That's the thing bro, it's all about business.

They don't give a damn about Sikhs as proved by the ethnic cleansing the Pakistani state organised in 1947 and the land stolen from all the Pakistani Gurdwara's.

I want to add that despite the fact that I dislike your pro-Pakistani and pro-Islamic agenda, nobody has gotten anything against u on a personal level. So people like u who are actually proud of speaking Punjabi are not my enemy or anybody else's on a fundamental level. You are a Punjabi brother (even though that brotherhood means little in the context of 1947). And if u are liberal enough that u would permit your kids to freely leave Islam or marry out with non-Muslims if they wanted to then u are one of the better Punajbi's from Pakistan. But the bottom line is this, so long as Islamic Republic of (West) Pakistan remains a single united country then India which has strengthened economically since 1984 is gana be even less likely to budge on freedom for different states currently locked within it.

Peace

[proactive 1,841]

For each country where Sikhs reside there needs to be a national Sikh organisation with a national Sikh strategy and agenda. With Pakistan, the agenda should be proper upkeep and maryada of the Gurdwaras and expansion of Sikh numbers through the transformation of Sehajdhari Sikhs of Sindh into Keshdhari Sikhs and eventually into Amritdhari Sikhs. I remember reading in the mid-80s that General Zia had allowed the Sehajdharis to be classed as Sikhs rather than as Hindus in the Census. Unfortunately there was no census until 1998 and the order appears to have been forgotten because even though Sikhs were counted in 1981 Census, no Sikh numbers are available for 1998 Census. The Gurdwaras have billions of rupees worth of property attached to them which had been encroached upon or the evacuee board gives out on rent for peanuts. Sikhs in Pakistan need to get organised and make sure that like the Waqf board does in India for Muslim properties, that the evacuee board uses the money from the Gurdwaras towards the social needs of the Sikhs of Pakistan.

Hopefully with Sardar Ramesh Singh becoming a member of the national assembly and a Sikh becoming a member of the KP assembly a step can be taken to organise the Sikhs.

[GPS 1,327]

I want to add that despite the fact that I dislike your pro-Pakistani and pro-Islamic agenda, nobody has gotten anything against u on a personal level. So people like u who are actually proud of speaking Punjabi are not my enemy or anybody else's on a fundamental level. You are a Punjabi brother (even though that brotherhood means little in the context of 1947).

Very well stated. I remember living for sometime in far east and out of pity, i gave free accommodation to a needy Punjabi boy of lahore who was on the street.The boy was very nice, well behaved and not a fundamentalist one.

He had met some friends from pak and one day he introduced me to one of them who met us by chance. That guy was a fundamentalist Muslim. I could gauge from his talks that he was of the view that i may convert. I told this boy that i would never like to meet anyother pakistani Muslim whosoever he may be as some of them are idiots and from the ghettos with very low mentality.

This is the attitude some of these people have and that is below the standard of a civilized society.

[isingh1699 209]

What's funny GPS Veerji is that the Muslim fundamentalist types have fantasies that Amritdhari Sikhs will convert to Islam when the reality is that no Amritdhari is ever that weak to convert towards falsehood. All the enemies of Sikhs are scared of the moment when the Sikh Panth unites. The Punjabi Muslims thought they would kill off all the Sikhs from Amritsar and Tarn Taran and onward and enlarge Pakistan all the way to Delhi but when the Panth united in response to the genocide of innocent Sikhs in Majha and Doaba the result was totally different than what the Mullahs wanted. Same thing with 1984 they chose to attack us on Guru Arjan Dev Ji Shaheedi Diwas thinking it would crush us. We weren't crushed, our Unity got stronger as a result. Once we regain ekta as a Panth our enemies will be powerless against us.