Farmers Movement Archive

Singhu border: Kirtan replaces fiery speeches in the memory of Sikh guru

NEW DELHI: Chardi Kala — the state of pure optimism and hope — is what Sikhs hope to achieve. And it is this concept that the protesting farmers at Singhu border rely on to remain confident of meeting their objective of having the new central farm laws repealed. Their inspiration also is their tenth Guru Gobind Singh, in whose honour on Wednesday, the dais from which only fiery speeches are being made played saw just a kirtan even as the makeshift gurdwara behind it saw a steady stream of the faithful coming to prostate themselves and to partake of the prasad. “The Guru’s life is what drives us,” declared Gurbaj Singh, kathakar at the tented gurdwara, who conducted a special katha in the morning as part of Gurpurab celebrations on Wednesday. “While our task is to tell people about the blessing that is our Guru Granth Sahib and Guru Gobind Singh Ji, we also prayed for the farmers’ tractor protest on January 26,” said the kathakar. “We told the protestors to be inspired by the teachings of the Guru who not only fought against an oppressor like the Mughal emperor, but also never compromised on his ideals.” Gurkamal Gill, an NRI protestor, said that Guru Gobind Singh’s life was filled with hardships and tough battles. “He lost so many of his family members during his tough times. Our struggle is nothing compared to his trials. That is what inspires us. The Guru’s teachings propel us to participate in the largest and longest protest in a peaceful manner,” declared Gill. Many langars decided to celebrate Gurpurab by serving sweets to everyone at the border. Sukhwinder Singh of the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee langar said apart from the main event at Gurdwara Rakabganj, sweet rice with dry fruits was being served in Singhu to mark the special occasion. At his langar, Gurdeep Singh from Punjab’s Fatehgarh said that instead of the usual tea and biscuits, they decided to offer grams and halwa on Gurpurab. Ludhiana’s jathedar Pinda Singh recalled the tenth guru giving Sikhs the mantra of ‘Sava lakh se ek ladaun tabhi Gobind Singh naam kahaun’, the paraphrase of this being that one Sikh can fight a quarter lakh enemies. “This is enough for us to sit here for months while feeding anyone who approaches us,” said the Jathedar as he distributed jalebis to hundreds of people at Singhu.

The Times of India

2021-01-21

Delhi