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Editorial
Too Many Questions
 Who killed whom
in Vienna? Did the Sikhs kill a non-Sikh? Was it internecine rivalry
between particular sections of the community? Who are the people who
sport a Sikh look but are still not Sikhs? Who are the people whom
the media calls a sect of the Sikhs, but they themselves are
unwilling to subscribe to the basic tenets of Sikhism?
Where are the
investigative journalism, the kind that used to come with a
perspective? Where are the ordinary reporters who used to do their
leg work before putting pen to paper, or camera to someone’s face?
Who are the people who have been detained in Vienna? How did the
fight ensue in the Bhagat Ravidass Temple and not the Gurdwara? Why
has there been no factual reporting from Vienna?
Is it a problem
of religion? Is it a problem of orthodoxy? Is it a caste issue? Is
it not a problem of ghettoisation of a part of Punjab where the gap
between the haves and have nots has been allowed to fester for far
too long?
Did someone out
there have a closer look at the visuals of the protestors? Were they
sad at the death of their leader? Was this a picture of collective
grievance? Who is allowing the lumpen elements to hold the state to
ransom? Can the Sikhs themselves imagine resorting to such large
scale violence in the state of Punjab? Whom is the state appealing
to? Where are the ubiquitous all-powerful
Punjab
police? Why are all political parties acting as if they have an eye
on the ensuing Nurmahal by-elections on June 12?
Why do the
Indian media and the world media not do its homework while reporting
on Sikh affairs? Where are the fact checkers on the sub-editing
desks of BBC and NYT? How can Reuters report that “Sri Guru Ravidass
Sabha” has been killed? Is there no one in the section to point out
that this does not even sound like an individual’s name? Is the
international media as lethargic when it reports on the events in
Gaza or the Shia-Sunni conflict in Pakistan or Afghanistan?
Why are the
Deras proliferating all over Punjab denigrating the Guru Granth
Sahib? Why is respect for Guru Granth Sahib being reported as
orthodoxy and fundamentalism? In the name of moderation, will the
Sikhs be subjected to blackmail and ransom by lumpens, the state
media and the power-hungry state machinery? Should the Sikhs commit
spiritual suicide?
On what basis
does the Indian print and satellite media conclude that radical Sikh
elements have take over Vienna for a very long time? If they have,
why does the hype-hungry media not report this earlier? Who told
Hindustan Times that the Sikh militants are divided over the issue
of the killing of the Sachkhand Dera chief? Who told PTI that the
Dera in question is a very important Sikh sect?
 Who told the
Punjab police that three of the assailants have been shot dead in
Vienna?
Where are the details?
Why is the
Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee silent on the issue? Why is
it not holding langars for the thousands stranded all over the
state? Why is the chief minister of the State appealing to people to
participate in the bandh call?
Is someone not
being grossly vindictive and childish to suggest that “we are ready
for a state funeral?” How many saintly figures from any community
have been granted the honour? Is state funeral a ploy to win votes
or is it up to the ruler of the day or is there a system to decide
that? Why should the Sikh Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh appeal
in the name of the Sikh Gurus? Did any Sikh indulge in any violent
activity in Punjab in recent days? Does not appealing in the name
of the Gurus imply that Sikhs are at fault?
Why has hate
taken over a section of the Sikhs? When will we recall, “Sabh ko
meet ham aapan keena”? When will Sikh religious, social and
political leaders remember that Guru Granth Sahib is categorical,
“Neecha Andar Neech Jaat, neechi hoon at neech, Nanak Tinke Sang
Saath, Vadhya seon kya Rees”?
There are no easy
answers.
27
May 2009
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