|
Reminiscing Kapur Singh
Set up
Sirdar Kapur Singh chair urges Khalsa Action Committee’
Zafar Zang Singh
AMRITSAR: To
commemorate the centennial birth anniversary of the Sikh stalwart,
Bhai Sahib Sirdar Kapur Singh, the conglomeration of Panthic bodies,
the Khalsa Action Comittee, sought the establishment of Sirdar Kapur
Singh Chair in any of the Universities of Punjab at a seminar
organised here by the Dal Khalsa at the auditorium of the Guru
Harkrishan Public School. The Committee also sought the raising of a
memorial in honour of Sant Jarnail Singh and other brave warriors
who laid down their lives during the June 984 attack on Darbar
Sahib.
There would not
have been a better occasion than this one, for the fledgling Khalsa
Action Committee to initiate a series of programmes to commemorate
the twenty five years of the storming of Darbar Sahib.
Reminiscing the
role and contribution of Sirdar Kapur Singh, various personalities
including former minister and SGPC member Manjit Singh Calcutta, Dal
Khalsa president Harcharnjit Singh Dhami, Shiromani Sikh Council
head Narain Singh, Chief Khalsa Diwan secretary Bhag Singh Ankhi and
Prof. Jagmohan Singh who touched upon various facets of the life and
times of Sirdar Kapur Singh.
Speaking on the
occasion, Bhai Jasbir Singh Khalsa, Giani Baldev Singh, and the
convenor of the Khalsa Action Committee, Bhai Mohkam Singh and
Damdami Taksal head, Baba Harnam Singh deliberated upon the events
leading to the Indian army attack on Darbar Sahib and its impact on
the Sikh nation.
The underlying
theme of all discussions and deliberations at the seminar hovered
around the contribution of Sirdar Kapur Singh towards evolving,
enunciating and elucidating the concept of Sikh doctrinal
sovereignty.
 Dwelling
extensively on his life, former SGPC secretary, Manjit Singh
Calcutta told the audience that he is the only ‘National Professor
of Sikhism’ and that this title was bestowed on him by Akal Takht
Sahib honouring his profound scholarship of Sikh religious thought
and traditions and his clear espousal of the Sikh cause.
Calcutta described
him as an encyclopaedia of world knowledge, who had mastered ancient
scripts and modern scientific scholarship and methodology. “He was
not only a writer but a fighter too, who fought for the Sikh cause
at all forums available to him”, said Calcutta and added that Sirdar
Sahib was of the firm belief that it was Sikhs should be masters of
their own destiny without fear or favour. Recalling the times spent
with him, Manjit Singh Calcutta said that, “Sirdar Sahib will always
remain an inspiration to those who want to see the Khalsa flag
unfurl with full glory on this planet.”
Prof Jagmohan Singh
urged the Young Khalsa to read and re-read the writings of Sirdar
Kapur Singh and to learn the idiom necessary for a better
understanding and response to the challenges of modern political
thought processes.
Bhai Mohkam Singh
said the Indian army attack on Darbar Sahib and Akal Takht was meant
to terrorize the community and liquidate that Sikh leadership which
was perceived to be representative of the spirit of a free, proud
and independent Sikh community.
Dal Khalsa
secretary, Kanwarpal Singh stressed the need for pre-eminence of the
Khalsa as enshrined in the Anandpur Resolution and Sikh Homeland
resolution as drafted by Sirdar Kapur Singh. “The political
sovereignty of the Sikhs cannot be compromised.” he further said.
Paying tributes to
the martyrs of 1984, Mr Dhami said the long tryst with brown
imperialists can and should culminate in the regain of Sikh
sovereignty by peaceful and legal means.
 A
special issue of the Punjabi
journal Awaaz-e-Khalsa, edited by Narain Singh of the Shiromani Sikh
Council was released by Bibi Paramjit Kaur, wife of late Jaswant
Singh Khalra and Waryam Singh, the former Secretary of the SGPC.
Speaking on the
occasion, Baba Harnam Singh Dhumma of the Damdami Taksal pointed out
that the times have not changed since Kapur Singh. He told the
audience that in the last twenty-four hours, Panthic-baiters, the
followers of Ashutosh, had held a function in the holy land of
Amritsar
at the behest of BJP MLA and firebrand anti-Punjabi leader Laxmi
Kanta Chawla, which was attended by member parliament and
prospective candidate, Navjot Singh Sidhu as well. He appealed to
all the Panthic bodies to join hands to counter all challenges faced
by the Sikh nation.
The nostalgic
memories of Gajinder Singh -founder member of Dal Khalsa, now in
exile, and who had spent a good portion of his life with Kapur
Singh, in Chandigarh was read out on the occasion. He described
Sirdar Kapur Singh as his mentor and a driving force behind the
formation of the Dal Khalsa way back in 1978. He said he was proud
to be associated with Kapur Singh and that it was befitting that we
eulogize his character and temperament.
In a message from
the US, Dr. Amarjit Singh urged Sikhs to heed the warnings of Kapur
Singh.
A large
number of Sikh youth, including those from Sikh Youth of Punjab, who
attended the Seminar, were visibly happy at the conclusions drawn at
the meet as it provided them an opportunity to imbibe the vast
knowledge of Sirdar Kapur Singh.
4
March 2009
|
Read Also