Thursday, March 28, 2024

Sikh separatist leader clinches parliament seat in India

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Simranjeet Singh, an active leader of the separatist Khalistan movement in Indian Punjab, has managed to secure victory on a legislative seat left vacant by the chief minister of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).

Singh, after grabbing the Lok Sabha seat, acknowledged the sacrifices of Sikhs, especially Sidhu Moosewala, and attributed his success to the hard work laid down by all Sikhs who sacrificed their lives for the cause.

He said, “The Indian government cannot treat the Sikh movement like it has treated Kashmiris or Naxalites who have been shot at by the Indian police with impunity.”

“We have reached a stage where India cannot treat us like that,” he said referring to the Sikh movement and vowed that he would become the voice of oppressed communities in the Indian parliament.

Read Golden Temple massacre: 38 years of Sikh wounds that never heal

The victory of the Sikh leader came amid a series of actions by the Modi regime to suppress the Sikh movement in Punjab. In one instance, India’s BJP government asked YouTube to remove a song of Sidhu Moosewala, who was shot dead earlier this year, that highlighted water injustice faced by Sikh farmers.

The song, 'SYL', garnered more than 25 million views with in 24 hrs of its release and was the slain singer's last recording. Apart from the water issues, it also reflects on the 1984 Sikh riots, farmer laws and the hoisting of Khalistan's flag on Delhi's Red Fort during the farmer protests of 2021.

Similarly, the Indian government has taken measures to restrict the movement of Sikh pilgrims who visit Pakistan for religious tourism. As per the government, they could not stay at the homes of their Pakistani hosts else they would be blacklisted. The Sikh pilgrims could only stay at Gurdwaras.

It may be noted here the Sikh community had organised mass protests across India and held a year-long sit-in against the new farming laws introduced by the BJP government. Subsequently, the government had to relent and the laws were repealed.


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