Activists of a US-based Sikh Coordination Committee said they shouted slogans against Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in California for comparing his ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ with Guru Nanak. (Image: News18/File)
The premier religious body of Sikhs criticized Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for comparing his ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ with Guru Nanak’s ‘sadness’ and said his party would remember the 1984 anti-Sikh riots.
Leading Sikh religious body Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee has criticized Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for comparing his ‘Bharat Jodi Yatra’ with Guru Nanak’s ‘sadness’ during his address in California. The leader may face more trouble as another Sikh organisation, the Sikh Coordination Committee of the US, has decided to protest during his visit to New York.
SGPC president Harjinder Singh Dhami said Rahul’s (Gandhi) statement was an expression of his short-sightedness and poor knowledge of Sikh history. He advised Gandhi to refrain from rubbing salt in the wounds of the Sikhs and to avoid confrontation with the community’s history, the personalities of the Sikh Gurus, and Sikh concerns.
“He talks about uniting India but the Sikh genocide carried out by his party in 1984 must be remembered. Were the 1984 anti-Sikh riots perpetrated by the leaders of their parent party to unite the country? He should clarify it,” said Dhami.
SGPC general secretary Gurcharan Singh Grewal said Guru Nanak traveled for the betterment of the world but the ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ was focused on political gains and vote bank.
He said, ‘Comparing Rahul’s (Gandhi) political tour with Guru Nanak Dev’s ‘Udasi’ can never be justified. This has hurt Sikh sentiments. Basically the ideology of Congress was anti-Punjab. Many issues such as division of Punjabi speaking areas, water problem or the issue of the capital of Punjab surfaced during the tenure of the Congress at the center, which have never been resolved till date.
Activists of the US-based Sikh Coordination Committee said they raised slogans against the Congress leader in California for comparing the Congress leader’s visit to Guru Nanak. He will face similar opposition in New York. Sikhs cannot forget the wounds inflicted by the Gandhi family, be it the attack on the Golden Temple or the anti-Sikh riots.”
