by Punjabnewswire4u (Balbir)
CHANDIGARH, AUG 6
The Punjab Chief
Minister, Mr. Parkash Singh Badal, today urged the Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan
Singh, to take up with the US Administration the issue of safety and security of
members of the Sikh community living in America. The Chief Minister called for
a comprehensive administrative and social campaign to eliminate the chances of
recurrence of such tragic incident in future.
Meanwhile, the Deputy Chief Minister and the
SAD president Mr. Sukhbir Singh Badal has also urged the Ministry of External
Affairs to widen its diplomatic response to cover some other countries too where the Sikhs have been
residing and contributing in a
significant and positive way to the progress of those countries which they have
made their second homes. The SAD Chief
has also sought status inputs from the
rank and file and office bearers of the NRI wing of the party about the issues
facing the Punjabis in general and the Sikhs in particular in the lands of
their adoption.
In his letter to the Prime Minister in the wake “of
the shocking tragedy at Oak Creek , Wisconsin, in the USA on Sunday, the Chief
Minister, Mr. Badal said ,” There is a growing feeling in the minds of
the people of Punjabis in general and the Sikhs in particular that
the Government of India must get more actively and
vigorously involved in getting the
US Administration to address the issue in right earnest.”
“There
is also a strong feeling among the Sikhs masses about the need for
a comprehensive awareness campaign by the US Government about
the identity and the highly constructive role of the Sikh community
in that country. Such an initiative should have been taken immediately after violent
attacks against members of the Sikh community in the wake of 9/11.
Unfortunately, no steps in this direction seems to have been taken,” said Mr. Badal
in his letter.
The
Chief Minister further said that members of the Sikh community have for
centuries been living peacefully in various parts of the world including the
USA. The community has an enviable record of enriching the social, cultural and
economic life in the countries of their adoption, “said Mr. Badal.
Pointing out that the Sikhs in America had
in particular been in the vanguard of social and economic progress of the USA,
the Chief Minister said that the tragic incident in Gurdwara Sahib in Oak Creek
was all the more painful and difficult to understand in the background of
the outstanding role played by the peaceful
Sikh community in the American success story.
Detailing the outlines of the steps
required to be taken for instilling a sense
of security in the minds of the Sikhs, Mr Badal said, “There are two issues
that require effective and proactive response from the Government of India. The
first of course is the immediate task of dealing with the aftermath of Sunday's
tragedy. Apart from tracking down the culprits and getting to the roots of the
crime and understanding the dynamics behind it, there is an equally important
and urgent need to provide relief to the affected families.”
Secondly, said the Chief Minister, there was an equally significant larger question of safety and security of
members of the Sikh community in that country on a long term basis. “What
worries me and everyone else here is that in the past also, there have been
instances of the Sikh community being made the target of hate and violence. There
is an urgent need for the Government of India to stress upon its US
counterpart the importance of ensuring adequate security at the
Sikh shrines while keeping in mind the equally
sensitive dimension of preserving the sanctity of their religious
places.
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