New York, January 8: The management committees of 96 Sikh Gurdwaras across America on Sunday decided to ban the entry of Indian diplomats and individuals in the Gurdwaras and their participation in the annual parades coinciding with the birth of the Khalsa, as per a press release.
A unanimous resolution cited the 1984 Indian Army attack on the Golden Temple and the massacre of Sikhs that followed as well as labeling of Sikhs as Hindus under Article (25) of the Indian Constitution as some of the reasons for the decision.
The resolution was spearhead and moved by the Sikh Coordination Committee of East Coast (SCCEC) and American Gurdwara Prabhandik Committee (AGPC), the two largest umbrella organizations of Sikh Gurdwaras and backed by Sikhs For Justice (SFJ) a human rights and advocacy group which is seeking a non-binding referendum in the State of Punjab to create an independent Sikh country “Khalistan,” the press issue said.
Supporting the ban, SFJ legal advisor Gurpatwant Singh Pannun said, “The diplomats represent the same Indian government which is responsible for the genocidal violence of Sikhs and has given impunity to Indian police officials who have committed torture and extrajudicial killings of Sikhs.”
