Jyoti Kamal
CNN-IBN
Amritsar (Punjab): The Akali Dal seems to be softening its stand over the Dera deadlock. Hours after stressing on the May 27 deadline for the Dera to vacate, the Shiromani Gurudwara Prabhandak Committee (SGPC) backed down.
Says SCPC President, Avtaar Singh Makkar, "I have never said that we will take law in our own hand. The final decision will be taken by the Akal Takht. As SGPC Chief, I have appealed to people to maintain peace. We don't believe in violence. We want a peaceful solution to the whole issue."
Meanwhile, some Dera supporters have started reconverting to Sikhism. At the Gurudwara Hari Krishan Shib in Bhatinda, 50 families formerly supporting the Dera reconverted on Wednesday.
Says a Dera man who converted to Sikhism, Nanak Singh, "Despite the fact that we were Dera supporters, we didn't like what Dera did."
However, despite what the converts claim, many feel that the fear of ostracism could also be a motive for conversion.
Says SGPC member, Davinder Kaur, "Now that these people are converting back to Sikhism, they won't be socially boycotted as per the Akal Takht's diktat."
The Bharatiya Janata Party, Akali Dal's ruling partner in the state, doesn't want the situation spiraling out of control. It's hoping that the government will find an amicable solution before the May 27 deadline.
Says State BJP President, Rajinder Bhandari, "The Akal Takht is supreme and Punjabis have faith in it, but we as a party are hopeful that a solution will come before the deadline.. We are taking all measures to ensure that there is a solution soon."
The SGPC has done a flip flop after saying that the Akal Takht diktat is above the law of the land. Now, Avtaar Siungh Makkar has said that they will not take the law into their hand. Though things seem to be getting better, it is these flip flops that brings Punjab politics to a boil.
Monday, 28 May 2007
RSS calls Sikhism a separate religion in 'great Hindu samaj'
PTI
Wednesday, May 02, 2007
NEW DELHI: The Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) has described the Sikh faith as a separate religion belonging to "one great Hindu samaj".
In a view that may not go well with BJP's ally Akali Dal, the Sangh says it sees a "problem" if minorities assume a 'political' character.
Spelling out its stand on minorities on its website rss.org under a mission header, it says it believes the Hindu Code Bill is applicable to Sikhs, Jains and Buddhists and that it should be applicable to all, including the Christians and the Muslims.
"The RSS believes in the plural structure of society. Therefore, it recognises that there is bound to be a majority-minority syndrome, and hence each group, whether in the majority or minority, will have a distinct identity and distinct character," it says.
But minorities, according to the Sangh, should restrain themselves from overstepping their basic character.
"... the majority-minority distinctions must be restricted to the bases on which the minority character is sought to be claimed. ... the problem arises when a particular minority transgresses the basis of its minority character and assumes a political one." it says.
In its stand on Sikhism, the Sangh has called it a separate religion but its followers part of Hindu samaj.
"We regard the Sikh religion as a separate religion, but we regard the Sikh people as belonging to our samaj. When we say that they are a part of the one great Hindu Samaj, we do not deny the existence of their separate religion and separate beliefs. The Hindu samaj is a commonwealth of many religions," it says.
The samaj, it adds, includes idol worshippers as well as those who oppose idol worship and those who accept the authority of the Vedas as well as those who do not. They are all included in the wider Hindu conceptualisation, the Sangh says.
"Many Sikhs attend RSS Shakhas, but nobody is asked to remove his beard or his pugree (turban). The RSS will never try to obliterate the identity of the Sikhs. That will be against the very grain of the RSS," it says.
Wednesday, May 02, 2007
NEW DELHI: The Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) has described the Sikh faith as a separate religion belonging to "one great Hindu samaj".
In a view that may not go well with BJP's ally Akali Dal, the Sangh says it sees a "problem" if minorities assume a 'political' character.
Spelling out its stand on minorities on its website rss.org under a mission header, it says it believes the Hindu Code Bill is applicable to Sikhs, Jains and Buddhists and that it should be applicable to all, including the Christians and the Muslims.
"The RSS believes in the plural structure of society. Therefore, it recognises that there is bound to be a majority-minority syndrome, and hence each group, whether in the majority or minority, will have a distinct identity and distinct character," it says.
But minorities, according to the Sangh, should restrain themselves from overstepping their basic character.
"... the majority-minority distinctions must be restricted to the bases on which the minority character is sought to be claimed. ... the problem arises when a particular minority transgresses the basis of its minority character and assumes a political one." it says.
In its stand on Sikhism, the Sangh has called it a separate religion but its followers part of Hindu samaj.
"We regard the Sikh religion as a separate religion, but we regard the Sikh people as belonging to our samaj. When we say that they are a part of the one great Hindu Samaj, we do not deny the existence of their separate religion and separate beliefs. The Hindu samaj is a commonwealth of many religions," it says.
The samaj, it adds, includes idol worshippers as well as those who oppose idol worship and those who accept the authority of the Vedas as well as those who do not. They are all included in the wider Hindu conceptualisation, the Sangh says.
"Many Sikhs attend RSS Shakhas, but nobody is asked to remove his beard or his pugree (turban). The RSS will never try to obliterate the identity of the Sikhs. That will be against the very grain of the RSS," it says.
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