Wednesday 28 May 2008
One white hair cost him to see the Gurus back!
There was a beautiful Singh in the times of Guru Gobind Singh Ji and gurujee used to love him alot. He was big, strong and handsome and decked in weapons, and gurujee really loved the fact that his Khalsa Fauji was tyar per tyar. One day he was at home tying his dastaar and looking at himself in the mirror and all of the sudden he spotted a white hair on his beard, he started to get worried and he thought he must get rid of it, so he thought one hair wouldn’t matter… so he plucked it… he got ready and went to see gurujee, as gurujee was busy he ran up to gurujee and said fateh…
Be A Singh
Not A Trimmey (Ginny pig)
The Devotee Sikh and the Joker!
Devoted Sikh
Joker
To a devoted Sikh Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji is a form of Waheguru and is the living Guru.
Gurbani violated and on toilet floor in Gurdwara!
Our community is using Gurbani and not thinking about consequences. We seem to put Gurbani on cards and other items so much these days without thinking about how they will end up getting treated. Cards end up in bins on floors in the hands of kids. In so many ways can the Gurbani be violated disrespected? We need to all need to start thinking twice about how and where we use Gurbani? Our community is suffering but I think that this is the punishment for the little respect that we show Gurbani! We are lucky that we have had the sight of Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji,in our lives. Only humans with good destiny get this, but do we have any high regards for the form of waheguru on earth?
Lets Show Respect to all Our Guru - Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji
Two Types of Women in our community!
Real Sikh Women
Real Sikh women have a modest dress sense. A real Sikh woman does kirtan and reads Gurbani. A real Sikh woman helps her family and lives in honour. They don’t exploit their self and have dignity plus morals. They forever remain faithful to the Sikh cause and take a stand against injustices. They raise their children according to Gurmat and teach them the Sikh code of conduct. They remain loyal to their spouse and don’t commit adultery! Shopping isn’t the biggest thing on their mind; instead it’s the situation and fate of the Panth. They aren’t confused about their love for Guru Ji. They live a pure life full of poise according to Gurbani. They better the community and aren’t a disgrace to the nation.
Conclusion
Sikh women used to do Seva all day everyday. These days if a brother asks his sister to get him a cup of water an argument starts! Sikh women gave their lives but never gave up Sikhi, these days the young girls hate Sikhi and take piss out of it. In our history and 1984 Sikh women were raped and dishonoured by the enemy, these days they are getting laid and dishonoured at their own will.
Friday 23 May 2008
Tigerstyle and Des C humiliate the honour of the Sikh Community!
TigerStyle Boys
Des C
Known for their inspirational Sikhi based music done in the immortal albums, the mentioned artists have turned their back on their nation. Instead of preserving the honour and pride of our people, they have released a new music video in which so much besti has been done. They way they portray the Sikh people is humiliating.
- A Sikh Girl starts the video and the title Miss Kaur comes across the screen. But she is not dressed like a princess; she is exposing her flesh and dresses like a prostitute.
- The tigerstyle boys appear in the video with their dumallas and long breads. The video contains half nude women jumping all over the scene. Tigerstyke boys appear at 42 seconds into the video.
The question now arises what sort of role models are these people to our youngsters?
What sort of activities are they influencing the next generation to do?
The Guru is saying to do the opposite of what these so called role models are telling us!
Will the immortal team work with these people again, unless they change their new distorted image of lust and corruption?
Fight in Wanstead (London) Over Satkar of Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji
A Singh in the Sangat was filled with biras (warrior spirit) and couldn’t take it no more, he made another Singh carry maharaj on his head and the gyani was beaten up! The gyani informed the police and now a case has been made against the Singh. But the Singh remains in chardi kala and says “I don’t care even if I had to get cut into pieces for the satkar of my Guru Ji”
Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji and the Cannibal
On one of his missions to enlighten people, Guru Nanak Dev Ji traveled many miles in the wilderness of
On hearing this the Guru became very sad and was lost in thought. He decided to act at once. Guru ji decided that he must meet these man-eaters and must make them give up this cruel way of life. He decided that he must end the misery of the town's people and free them from this constant fear of becoming victims of these merciless cannibals.
He got ready to go. His two companions readily agreed to go with him. But the people said, "Guru ji, please don’t go. They will kill you and eat your flesh."
The Guru replied, "No, I must do my duty. I must make them give up their cruel way of life. I want to make them live like good God-fearing people. I have no fear. God is always with me. He will help me in this work. It is His work. He will save me from the man-eaters. Have no fear. Please pray to God for my success. My success will bring joy to your people. They need to be taught a new and better way of life and be shown that they are doing wrong."
Accordingly, the Guru, along with his two companions, started towards the jungle. Guru ji had been told that the chief of the man-eaters was named Kauda. He had also learnt where that chief man-eater lived. He decided to meet Kauda directly and try and reform him. If he succeeded then, Guru ji knew that Kauda would then reform others of his tribe. With this aim in mind, the Guru started towards Kauda’s hut. Soon, he and his two companions were quite near it.
Kauda saw three men coming. He was highly pleased and had a big smile on his face. He used to go far to catch men for food. That day, three of them were coming to him of their own free will. That was lucky, indeed. He would have enough meat for many days for him and his family.
He had a large, deep, cauldron full of oil. He lit fire under it, in order to make the oil boil. The three men had come very near. He felt the oil. It was as cool as before. The fire had lost the power to heat the oil. He could not understand what had happened to the fire. He decided to roast one of the three on the fire direct. He would keep the other two safely bound. He would eat them later. Guru ji was, then, almost at Kauda's hut. The Guru and his companions were then just very near. The Guru was in front. Kauda caught Guru ji in his arms.
Guru Nanak smiled and said, "Sat Kartar, Sat Kartar".
Kauda was puzzled and a little confused.
He had caught and eaten many men before. None of them had behaved in this manner.
He threw Guru ji into the fire. He was hoping that the fire would kill Guru ji and roast him.
But Guru ji stood up in the fire. He was smiling at Kauda.
Guru ji companions were saying aloud, "Sat Kartar, Sat Kartar"
Kauda began to tremble.
Guru ji stepped out of the fire.
Kauda was stunned. He was amazed that the fire had no power to hurt the Guru. He did not try to push Guru ji back into the fire. Kauda became totally confused and seemed to have lost his mind; his body just froze and lost the power to move.
Guru ji sat on the ground near the fire. He recited Gurbani. Kauda stood listening. His head was bowed. His hands were folded before him.
After a time, the Guru stopped singing the Gurbani. He looked at Kauda with a kind smile. Kauda fell at his feet. The Guru said, ‘Rise, brother Kauda! Guru ji looked at him compassionately and graciously and said, "Kauda! You do not see what you do. You have gone blind. Why do you want to cast yourself in the burning fire of hell?"
Kauda, whose conscience was dead with heinous crimes, suddenly came to realization and was overwhelmed with repentance. Guru ji said, "Give up your cruel way of life. Take a vow not to harm anyone. Be kind and merciful. Help and serve others."
The very gracious and holy sight of the Divine Master made Kauda realize his guilt and he fell on the feet of the Master once again and prayed for mercy. The gracious Master blessed him with Naam. ("God's Name").
Guru ji told him, "Always remember God. Repeat His name. Earn your bread with honest work. Share your earnings with others. Do all this yourself and teach others of your tribe to do the same."
Kauda promised to live and act as advised by the Guru. From a killer and eater of men he became a servant and teacher of men. He was a completely changed person and thereafter lived as a devout disciple of the Guru as a completely honest worshipper of God.
What do you do with your Sikhi tops?
Personally I think Gurbani on tops etc is wrong because no matter how much care you take, you are bound to cause some sort of disrespect. But the most common one is when you put your clothes for the wash; we mix them with our underwear or put the Sikhi tops with other dirty laundry!
Guru Ji put through passive Smoking!
I teach santhiya (teaching Gurbani) and started a new class. One of the singhs Gutka Sahib smelled of cigarette smoke. I asked him why this was; he said he keeps them in his room and that even dough he is an amritadhari but both his parents still smoked in the premises. I said can’t you ask them to smoke outside; he said he has but they refuse saying that it is their house.
I had to tell him that Guru Gobind Singh Ji’s horse even balked when it was passing a tobacco field. The Sikhs should avoid passive smoke as much as they can! It is bad for our health. After great consideration and advice it was decided that all Gutka sahibs from the Singhs premises be removed as passive smoke had contaminated them.
To keep Gurbani in the presence of Smoke is a Great Disrespect. So if you are doing so or know anyone that does that please could you do something about it?
Dayv-Gandhaaree, Fifth Mehla:
Turn away, O my mind, turn away. Turn away from the faithless cynic.
False is the love of the false one; break the ties, O my mind, and your ties shall be broken. Break your ties with the faithless cynic.|
One who enters a house filled with soot is blackened.
Run far away from such people! One who meets the Guru escapes from the bondage of the three dispositions.
I beg this blessing of You, O Merciful Lord, ocean of mercy - please, don't bring me face to face with the faithless cyincs.
Make servant Nanak the slave of Your slave; let his head roll in the dust under the feet of the Holy. Ang 535 SGGSJ
Respect Gurbani Please!
Sikh women Disrespects Gurbani!
However this punjabi bimbo, put a Ik-onkar tattoo on her back, this is very disrespectful!
Protests Against Mandira Bedi For Hurting Sikh Sentiments
Anti-Mandira protests were held in Ludhiana and other cities of Punjab. Akali Dal (youth) workers protested in Ludhiana and burnt an effigy of Mandira on Wednesday , while in holy city of Amritsar, Shiromani Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC) - the mini-parliament of Sikh religion - expressed its displeasure over Mandira using the Sikh religious symbol on her body for fashion modelling.
Thursday 22 May 2008
Ik-onkaar being disrespected on a large scale
The so called Sikhs are taking the piss, first of all Sikhi is against tattoos as they are human made modifications to the way God created us. But ignoring this some Sikhs have adopted to have Gurbani tattoos. This is a total disrespect and insult to Gurbani.
Most people put the ik-onkaar tattoo on their hand or arm.
- But people smoke, drink or eat meat with the tattoo
- Some people wash their backside with that same hand
- When reproducing or taking part in a lustful activity, the Gurbani gets disrespected.
- Gurbani was given to us by God, for our salvation not as a fashion symbol
- Some people put these tattoos on their backs, even when Sikhs never sit with their backs to Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji.
Using Gurbani as a tattoo is a slap in Guru Ji’s face. If you have love for Guru Ji you would get it removed or have another tattoo placed over it (this can be expertly done).
The worst thing is that Ik-onkaar means one God, but most people who express this as a tattoo still believe in the caste system or are a racist.
Guru Har Rai, disillusioned with the intolerant attitude of the Mughal Ruler, resolved never to see his bigoted face. However, to elucidate the piety of the celestial Gurbani of the Granth Sahib, he sent his elder son Ram Rai to the Delhi Darbar. After prolonged discourses Ram Rai did manage to convince the Emperor of the impartiality of the Gurbani. But this could not satisfy the preconceived contemptuous attitude of the
The Guru, who revered the Bani so much, could not acquiesce to the action of Ram Rai. He disowned his son and debarred him from Guruship. Ram Rai remained in agony throughout his life at Dehradoon. When he met Guru Gobind Singh, the Tenth Master, at a ripe old age, he begged to be pardoned and he was, then, blessed by the Guru with his deliverance.
Once Guru Har Rai, lying on his bed, heard chanting of the Gurbani by a group of his devotees coming toward his household. He was delayed in getting up in reverence. But when he did stand up, he tripped and hurt his leg. He construed this as the punishment for still relaxing on the bed while the Gurbani was enunciated. Therefore, he decided in the future to sit on the floor only during the day time when his followers were coming in and out reciting the Gurbani. (The listener of Gurbani must never sit on a higher platform then the reciter of Gurbani)
Guru Har Rai, the great apostle of mercy, lived nearly thirty-two years of his life imbued with the Gurbani and its celestial, humane and compassionate teachings. He commenced his journey for his heavenly abode on October 6, 1661, after endowing Guruship to his young son, Guru Harkrishan.
Baba Nihal Singh Ji - The Living Shaheed
On May 22nd 1964- 11 Sikhs were gunned down at Paonta Sahib (Himachal Pradesh) by the Mahant's henchmen.
The sangat of Poanta Sahib had requested head of Tarna Dal (not Nihal Singh, but the one before him) to visit the Gurdwara. They complained that the residing masand was abusing the Gurdwara premises through drinking, raping women that came alone, and making prostitutes dance inside. After several such requests Babaji decided to visit Poanta Sahib accompanied by 13 GurSikhs. They left, from Gurdwara Haria Welan Hoshiarpur, riding horses and horse drawn carts. When they arrived near Gurdwara Poanta Sahib, two GurSikhs carried Babaji's message for the masand requesting initiation of an Akhand Patt at the Gurdwara. The masand did not give a definitive answer, instead assured to respond before the next morning. Meanwhile the masand confided with the local police chief, one of his corrupt friends who endorsed and permitted his evil acts.
Frontline Comments: The Singhs should have had guns , cos Guru Ji said be tyar per tyar! Be ready for a battle at all times!
Friday 16 May 2008
Bus driver commits murder of little girl
An Indian worker and his four-year-old daughter were crushed to death by a bus after the conductor pushed them off for not having the fare.
Angry passengers then set fire to it in revenge and the conductor was arrested and charged with unintentional murder, said police.
Sanschar Toppo, 40, was 10 rupees (12p) short of the fare when he got on the bus with his daughter.
Fake Police encouter 18 years ago fresh evidence!
Chandigarh, May 15
Nearly 18 years after an ITI student was eliminated by the cops near Khanna,
his parents have now gathered evidence in support of their contention that
the killing was staged.
They have finally managed to procure, through the Right to Information (RTI)
Act, a copy of an inquiry report that was allegedly kept under cover for so
many years.
Armed with the report, Krishan Singh and Harbans Kaur of Fathegarh Sahib
have moved the Punjab and Haryana High Court, seeking a compensation of Rs 5
lakh for the killing of their 19-year-old son Baljit Singh in a fake
encounter on June 14, 1990.
In their petition, placed before the high court division Bench of Justice
M.M. Kumar and Justice Sabina, the two have claimed: Bare perusal of the
report makes it crystal clear that their son was innocent and killed by the
respondent police officials in a fake encounter. The petitioners have added
the Punjab government had asked the Ludhiana deputy commissioner to conduct
an inquiry after the media and the political parties highlighted the matter.
A report in the matter was submitted to the authorities concerned, but its
contents were not made public. Though time and again they contacted the
powers that be for procuring a copy of the report, it was not handed over to
them.
Even efforts to procure the information through the RTI Act did not prove
beneficial, initially. An application was moved on May 30, 2007, for the
report. But the DC concerned said it had been submitted to the Home
Department.
The petitioner then approached the Home Department. But, nothing came out of
it. Eventually, the petitioner moved the Appellate Commission; and on its
directions the report was handed over to them.
Going into the background of the matter, the petitioners added Baljit Singh
and friend were riding a scooter when they were apprehended by the
respondent police officers near Kotla Ajmer village. The two were, on the
direction of then DSP Paramraj Singh, shot. They were then declared dreaded
terrorist.
The entire drama was enacted for promotions, the petitioners alleged. Taking
up the petition, the Bench today issued notice of motion to the State of
Punjab and the respondent police officials. The case will now come up for
hearing on May 27.
Try And attend!
Celebrating the anniversary of Bhagat Baba Dhanna Jat
You and your family are cordially invited by the
Guru Nanak Sat Sang Sikh Temple , 202- 204 Cannock Road , Wolverhampton , WV10 0AL & Sikh Community & Youth Service UK ,
To attend this celebration event.
On Sunday 18th May 2008
Bhog Sri Akhand Path followed by Sardar Amarjit Singh Bharoli Jatha
12.00pm Kavi Darbar & Speakers
Guru Ka Langar will be served
Waheguru Ji Ka Khalsa, Waheguru Ji Ki Fateh
Wednesday 14 May 2008
The True Guru
Guru - The Divine Light
GU- means darkness and
RU- means Light.
In Sikhism the word 'Guru' is, thus, defined as the Light that dispels all darkness, and that is called JOT (Divine Light). Guru Nanak was, therefore, the EMBODIMENT of Divine Light:
'Gur Nanak Dev Govind roop.' 'Guru Nanak is embodiment of the Light of God.' Ang 1192 SGGSJ
The Guru in Sikhism is a perfect Prophet or Messenger of God in whom the Light of God shines fully. The True Guru is in union with Divine Lord of all. Thus he ushers the devotees, the seekers of Truth into a spiritual path of truth. Through the Guru the Glory of the Lord is transmitted to humanity. Literally Guru Nanak's body was a platform from which God Himself spoke and delivered His message- Gurbani (Divine Word). God manifested Himself through Guru Nanak:
'Gur meh aap samoai sabad vartaya.' 'In the true Guru (Nanak) He installed His Own Spirit Through him, God speaks’ Ang 127 SGGSJ
God is in the Guru and Guru is in God. Though God is everywhere and in everybody but His traits are illuminated through the Guru. The Jot (Divine Light) that enshrined Guru Nanak's body and the Primal Jot of God are, therefore, one and the same:
'Gur Nanak Nanak har soai.' 'O Nanak, Jot of Nanak and God are one.' – Ang 865 SGGSJ
When Guru Nanak conferred Guruship on Bhai Lehna (later called Guru Angad), the JOT was passed on and Guru Angad too became the embodiment of Divine Light. In the same way all the nine Gurus were the embodiments of Gur Nanak Jot (like a candle lighting another candle). The tenth Master, Guru Gobind Singh then conferred the Guruship on Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji (Holy Scripture), which too became the embodiment of Divine Light. Gur Nanak JOT is, therefore, enshrined and preserved in Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji. Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji is the Living Guru for ever. For the Sikhs, the Sri Guru Granth Sahib is the manifestation of the Guru's Spirit.
When the Sikh Gurus were alive Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji was then called Adi Granth as it had not been given Gurgaddi then due to Guru Ji being on earth in a physical form. Now Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji is the total Guru, so to call Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji - Adi Granth now is very disrespectful!
Sikhism endeavors to uplift the human soul from the shackles of Maya (materialism). It aims at a virtuous life which leads to the ultimate realization of a state of Eternal Bliss. The objective of Guru Nanak's Guruship was to give instructions in the True Name, to save humanity from immersing in the ocean of distress and misery arising out of worldly life, and to blend the human souls with their Creator, thus, emancipating them from the cycle of transmigration breaking all barriers and bonds of sufferings. This is the essential character of Sikh faith.
The essence and diamond of real peace
In kaljug the mortal wonders around after Maya and tries to find peace by chasing money and pleasing the opposite sex. People will do anything for money and the opposite sex, their whole lives are based upon pleasing others and their own dark desires. Going to work, clubs, pubs and parties they spend their lives in search for peace. They chase around the worldly illusion forgetting that it is an illusion. No one has found peace through worldly things. The internal pain and suffering never goes no matter how much one make try and cover it up. The fear of death is always there no matter how brave one may act. Without remembering the lord and living a life according to Gurbani one has:
Negative energy/ is never content/ wastes time in false illusive pleasures/ is never satisfied/ Feels pain and fear burning with the fire of Sin/ The mind is full of evil intentions and corruption/The soul is impure and ones intellect is diseased.
You do not control your seed and semen, and yet you claim to practice abstinence. You are lured by the tastes of the tongue and sex organs. Ang 903 SGGSJ
He does not preserve his semen and seed, and does not chant the Shabad. Ang 945 SGGSJ
But by living according to Gurbani one has:
Positive energies well up inside them/Their soul becomes purer/The feeling of pain goes away/ feeling of contentment in the sanctuary of the lord/ stopped chasing the false and sinful pleasures of the world which lead to hell/ a pure mind which becomes attached to the lord and all corruption is gone.
Your Name, O Lord and Master, is the Purifier of sinners, the Giver of peace, immaculate, cooling and soothing. Ang 207 SGGSJ
In the Lord's Sanctuary there is soothing coolness, peace and tranquility. He has extinguished the burning fire. Ang 210 SGGSJ
The Dark Age of Kali Yuga is so hot; the Lord's Name is soothing and cool. Ang 288 SGGSJ
Those who meditate on You, Lord, those who meditate on you-those humble beings dwell in peace in this world. Ang 11 SGGSJ
The created Universe emanated from within You; there is no other at all. Whatever is said to be, is from You, O God. He is the True Lord and Master, throughout the ages. Creation and destruction do not come from anyone else. ||1|| Such is my Lord and Master, profound and unfathomable. Whoever meditates on Him, finds peace. The arrow of the Messenger of Death does not strike one who has the Name of the Lord. ||1||Pause|| the Naam, the Name of the Lord, is a priceless jewel, a diamond. The True Lord Master is immortal and immeasurable. That tongue which chants the True Name is pure. The True Lord is in the home of the self; there is no doubt about it. ||2|| some sit in the forests and some make their home in the mountains.
Forgetting the Naam, they rot away in egotistical pride. Without the Naam, what is the use of spiritual wisdom and meditation? The Gurmukhs are honored in the Court of the Lord. ||3||
Acting stubbornly in egotism, one does not find the Lord. Studying the scriptures, reading them to other people, and wandering around at places of pilgrimage, the disease is not taken away.
Without the Naam, how can one find peace? ||4|| No matter how much he tries, he cannot control his semen and seed. His mind wavers, and he falls into hell. Bound and gagged in the City of
When one is rid of egotism and pride, his mind is drenched in the Lord's Love. Practicing fraud and hypocrisy, he does not find God. Without the Word of the Guru's Shabad, he cannot find the Lord's Door. O Nanak, the Gurmukh contemplates the essence of reality. ||8||6|| Ang 906 SGGSJ
Girl Gang Raped! She is only 13
Pastor Motilal Das of United Bethany Church said that at around 3 a.m. on Friday (May 2) the villagers sexually assaulted his daughter, Elina Das, and left her unconscious in front of his house in an attempt to drive him and his Christian ministry out of Laksmipur village in Fulbaria sub-district, 120 kilometers (75 miles) north of the capital.
Local residents have long been angry with him for his ministry and evangelism, he said, and he has received death threats.
“I did not pay attention to any of the threats or hindrances – I continued evangelical and pastoral activities with prayer,” Das told Compass. “They targeted me to evict from this area to stop the Christian activities. When nothing stopped me, then they wanted to leave me scarred for life, so that I would be upset and not be able to show my face to the society for shame, and therefore I would leave the village.”
Das, who became the first Christian in the area in 1986 and has been key in an increase to more than 250 Christians and the emergence of 12 churches, said the brutal attack was pre-planned and calculated to stop further expansion of Christianity in northern Bangladesh.
Elina Das is the only Christian student at her school, he said. “Always local boys used to tease her on her way to school,” he said, “and used to tell her filthy words against Christianity and western culture.”
Five villagers attacked her when she went from her thatched house to an outdoor latrine, said investigating officer Sanwar Hossen of Fulbaria police station.
“Five people lying in ambush in the pitch-dark near the toilet snatched her by gagging her mouth with her body scarf [and taking her] to a nearby tea stall, 400 meters from the house, where they gang-raped her,” Hossen said.
Besides the religious opposition of some residents, the officer said villagers had no personal or commercial conflicts with the Das family that could serve as a motive for the assault.
“There was no family vendetta or personal clash or enmity of Motilal with the local people for which his daughter would be raped,” Hossen said. “There was even no land dispute between him and the neighbors, because he does not have any land.”
Family members found Elina Das lying unconscious in front of the house that morning.
“When I woke up in the early morning, I saw my daughter lying unconscious in front of my house,” Das said. “ A few hours after the gang rape, they had left her in front of my house.”
“I have received death threats against my entire family if I do not withdraw the case,” Das told Compass. “We, all the family members, were afraid and took shelter in the same police station, where my wife, daughter, son and I stayed for two days and one night.”
Elina Das has identified two of the rapists and could identify the others if she saw them or their pictures, said Das. Police have arrested Shebul Miah, 22. The girl identified another suspect, 32-year-old Dulal Miah, alias Dulu, who remains at large.
Fearful of his life if he returned to his home, Das relocated to the home of a friend in Dhaka on Saturday (May 3).
Derelict Police
When Das initially went to police to file charges, he said, police were reluctant to register the case.
“Police told me that it was a false case,” Das said. “They also said that it was a fabricated drama. Police spoke with my daughter in filthy language and showed prurient interest in the details of the incident in front of us rather than filing the case quickly.”
Area Assembly of God (AG) pastor Sento Mir requested that the local denominational chairman encourage police to file charges. Following a phone call from him on Friday (May 2), police immediately agreed to investigate the incident and filed a rape case in the afternoon.
“We know Motilal Das as a good man in the locality, though he is a Christian,” said a Muslim neighbor, 42-year-old Ruhul Amin, who owns a tea stall in the nearby area. “He had not any personal clash or enmity with others in the village.”
Mir, the AG pastor, said Das will not be able to return to the area unless justice is served.
Likewise, he added, if the identified absconding rapist is not caught and convicted, the family will no longer be able to live in the area.
Bangladesh on ‘Watch List’
The day of the rape, the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) announced annual recommendations for countries to be designated “Countries of Particular Concern,” but it did not include Bangladesh.
Rather, the commission put Bangladesh on its “Watch List” due to the nature and extent of violations of religious freedom engaged in or tolerated by the government. Other countries on the Watch List are Afghanistan, Belarus, Cuba, Egypt, Indonesia, and Nigeria.
According to USCIRF, Islamist radicalism and violence, the threat of serious violence and continued discrimination against members of religious minority communities remain significant concerns in Bangladesh.
Frontline Comments:
This is why Guru Ji gave us the kirpan to protect us from evil doers like this in this dark age. Death Before DIshonour!!
Monday 12 May 2008
Hate Attack , not much response!
St Benedicts College & Merseyside Police Fail To Protect Eleven Year Old Victim of Racist Hate Crime
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Arjan Rhode was attacked by a gang of teenagers last Monday afternoon on the 82 service in Garston. The bus was packed, around school leaving time at 3.10pm, but nobody intervened.
Police arrested only one boy aged 17 on suspicion of a religiously aggravated public order offence. He was being questioned by officers and the matter could have been passed to the force’s Sigma Unit, which deals with hate crime.
Police claim they are currently examining CCTV tapes from the bus.
SSNews contacted St Benedicts College and Merseyside Police to explain why they failed to protect the child, why they have subsequently not fully investigated and held to account all the perpetrators of this racist hate crime and finally why they have not put into place adequate measures to prevent this kind of hate crime ever happening again.
St Benedicts College issued a statement saying:
'Any racist incidents are totally against the ethos of our Catholic College. Such incidents are always condemned, thoroughly investigated and action taken.'
'Indications so far are that any perpetrator does not attend Saint Benedict's College. We have contacted the police and will be working with them to identify anyone involved.'
The Mission Statement of the College reads:
"We provide a safe, secure and happy environment."
Clearly they and Merseyside Police failed to protect this child.
The Sikh Community worldwide is outraged that such a serious Race-Hate Crime has not been categorically denounced by a wider proportion of the community in Garston, Liverpool and that this Hate Crime has not been investigated and the perpetrators punished to the fullest extent of the law.
Should all children not be safe to travel to and from school without being made a victim of a racist hate crime?
Turban Attack In School
What Happened
"No mother should have to worry that her child could be hurt at school because of the way he looks," said Sukhjot Kaur, the teenager's mother.
A History of Violence in New Jersey
In 2006, Lucille Davey, the head of New Jersey's Department of Education, sent a memorandum to all school superintendents calling on all schools to protect Sikh children from harassment. That memorandum cited more bias incidents against Sikh students in New Jersey.
"Hightstown High School has an obligation not only to ensure the safety of its pupils, but also to foster students' appreciation for their community's religious diversity," said Harsimran Kaur, Staff Attorney, Sikh Coalition. "We call on the school and local police to take immediate action to ensure this does not happen again"
The Coalition will work with the local community and police to address this matter. The Coalition continues encourages all Sikhs to fearlessly practice their faith and stand up for their rights.
Thursday 8 May 2008
80 protestors who walked 500 miles detained
The protesters, including 52 children, were calling for the site of the
Guards took the protesters to a nearby police station soon after they arrived outside Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's official residence, Dhingra said. They were freed two hours later.
officer Jagat Singh said the protesters came without an appointment with the prime minister, and protests are not allowed around the official residence.
The leak from the
A subsidiary of
For decades, survivors have been fighting to have the site cleaned up, but they say their efforts were slowed when Michigan-based Dow Chemical Co. took over Union Carbide in 2001, seven years after Union Carbide sold its interest in the
The protesters' nearly 500-mile walk from
They decided to demonstrate outside the prime minister's residence after failing to schedule a meeting with him.
UNENDING AGONYFor those who were fortunate enough to survive the Bhopal gas leak, the ordeal continues. The poison in the environment continues to pose risks to their life and health. Protracted legal battles have led to, at best, hopelessly inadequate compensation, writes Vibha Sharma. Photos from Raghu Rai’s book Exposure: Portrait of a Corporate Crime, published by Greenpeace.
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For many who survived the dark night of December 2-3, 1984, in Bhopal, dawn is yet to break. The leak of 40 tonnes of lethal methyl isocyanate (MIC) gas from the Union Carbide Corporation’s (UCC) pesticide factory — the worst industrial disaster in history — killed or disabled several lakhs. By the third day of the disaster, around 8,000 had died. Today the number of those who died stands at 20,000. Lakhs who survived were debilitated for life. Of the 5,20,000 who were exposed to the poisonous gases, 1,20,000 remain chronically ill. Nor is that all; till today children in the city are born infirm and deformed.
Successive governments, Union Carbide Corporation and its new owner Dow Chemical shrugged off responsibility for the compensation and rehabilitation of victims. After years of legal wrangling for compensation, more than five-and-a-half lakh survivors of the tragedy are facing another threat. The hazardous waste, still lying abandoned at the site, is continuously seeping into the ground water.
With the scientific evidence of contamination in ground water increasing and spreading with every passing day, the wait for a sequel to the 1984 disaster has started.
While official estimates put the quantity of the toxic waste lying abandoned in the factory at somewhere around 8,000 tonnes, activists says the figure is much higher — close to 20,000 tonnes, perhaps, and could change if a chemical analysis of the waste is done. For now, samples collected by environmental groups from soil, groundwater and vegetables have shown dangerously high levels of heavy metals, including nickel, chromium, mercury and lead, besides toxic materials like dichlorobenzines. All of these were used at the UCC plant.
The state pollution control board has also confirmed the contamination of the groundwater. Contamination levels in soil and water samples at the factory site has been found to be 10 times higher than in surrounding areas, clearly indicating that toxic waste lying on the premises is the source. Mercury and lead have found their way into breast milk, creating a whole new generation of the gas disaster victims.
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In 1984, the wind direction had carried the deadly MIC gas towards the south. The groundwater thus contaminated is now heading north, carrying with it poisons to those who were believed to have been left untouched by the tragedy.
Those living out the consequences of the tragedy are perhaps the only ones who care, says Abdul Jabbar, an activist who has been involved with the gas victims’ cause since that fateful night when he woke up to the sounds of screams. Jabbar now runs a seamstress workshop for widows of gas victims and is one of the activists, besides Rashida Bi, Champa Devi and Satyanath Sarangi, who are actively involved.
For what he terms a "sagyan aparadh" (consciously committed crime), he blames everyone, from consecutive Congress governments, which according to him withheld information about water contamination at the site because it was a Congress government that had welcomed the UCC to Bhopal, to the present BJP government, which is doing nothing to alleviate victims’ miseries. "It is not even providing the affected areas with clean drinking water. There are tonnes and tonnes of toxic waste lying on the premises and the solar pond site near Annu Nagar," he says. What is the state government doing about all this, he asks.
However, according to Chief Minister Babu Lal Gaur, the problem has been solved. "People are not being affected by the contaminated groundwater as they are not using it. We have put red cross signs on all hand pumps, carrying the warning that the water is not fit for drinking and can only be used for washing clothes."
He says there are about 1000 houses in the area and fire brigade tankers regularly supply water to residents of Bada Talaab. "Dow Chemical is responsible for the contamination and the state government wants it to clean up the site. We had given Union Carbide clean land and we want clean land in return. It is a serious matter, involving a foreign country. After the Second Circuit Court of Appeals in New York on March 17 asked us to give a no-objection certificate so that Dow Chemical could be directed to clean up the site, we said we had no objection and wrote to the Chemicals and Fertilisers Ministry to pursue the matter." Fortunately, in June the Centre, following the NoC given by the Madhya Pradesh Government, had sent a letter to the US court, saying that it had no objection if the Dow Chemical was asked to clean up the site keeping in mind the polluter-pays principle.
It seems the government, which has been criticised for its lax regulation of the UCC and reluctance to pursue legal claims, is finally ready to hold Dow Chemical, the multibillion chemical company which took over the UCC, liable for the ground contamination.
Vinuta Gopalan, a Greenpeace India campaigner associated with the Bhopal campaign, terms this a good sign, even though it has come quite late in the day. "But that is how governments work. There is a lack of political will to enforce corporate responsibility and Dow Chemical refuses to fulfil its medical and social responsibility. It is not a question of 1000 houses but of 25,000 persons who still do not have access to piped water. These days tankers supply water to some areas, but during summers and monsoons matters become worse."
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Jabbar is also not impressed by the Chief Minister’s statement. "Bade sharm ki baat hai. There are 8,000 affected families. The Chief Minister is waiting for others to act. It has been more than five months since the Centre wrote the letter to the US court. Why is the Chief Minister not telling the Centre to put pressure on the US Government or at least provide safe water, which is his responsibility? In 1997, the Gujral government had given Rs 3 crore to provide piped water in the affected bastis. Till date half of the affected bastis have tankers supplying water because these are the ones which have overhead tanks."
"In some cases there pipelines have been laid but either the water is not potable or there is no water supply at all. In other cases, approach roads are so bad that during monsoons it becomes virtually impossible for tankers to enter the bastis. These are the times when people do not have any option but to drink contaminated water," says Vinuta.
While experts have repeatedly underlined the urgency to secure the contaminated site, taking care of the hazardous waste may not be as simple as it sounds. Surendra Kumar, member of the FICCI expert committee on environment, calls it a complicated procedure, requiring complete data on the toxic waste with reference to its reactivity, explosivity, carcinogenic effects, subsequent generation of toxic chemicals and gases and their treatment.
"Whether you recycle, reuse, treat, land fill or incinerate it, a complete dossier on the quantitative, qualitative and chemical properties of the waste needs to be compiled. Who knows what kind of complexities, changes or degeneration have taken place in the past 20 years," he assets. The government, he says, is a signatory to the Bassel convention on trans-boundary movement of hazardous waster, which has a specific procedure for handling toxic waste.
Unending trial
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While official estimates put the number of those who dies from direct exposure to the lethal gases at 20,000, Jabbar says that the number of the dead is much higher, close to 40,000. By the third day after the first night when people woke up in their homes to fits of coughing and lungs filled with water, over 8,000 had died, mainly from cardiac and respiratory arrest. For as long as two days after the disaster, debate on the characteristics of the lethal gas, its repercussions on health and its antidotes was still going on.
Survivors, who were mainly labourers, suffer from regular bouts of breathlessness, headaches and digestive problems, besides defective eyesight, severe depression, palpitations and other ailments which have affected their ability to work. Children are born with deformities and women face severe gynaecological problems, including painful menstruation and early menopause. Most of the survivors are deep in debt. The 1989 settlement of $ 470 million, a total of $ 370 to $ 533 per victim, is too paltry a sum to pay for medical bills of 20 years and make both ends meet.
Fiftytwo-year-old Champa Devi Shukla, a survivor who lost her husband and one son to health complications following the gas leak, says the fight for compensation is far from over. For her efforts in pursuing the issue at both national and international levels, she was awarded the Goldman Environmental Prize, instituted by the Goldman Environmental Foundation, USA, this year.
But since the dark night when she with her family ran towards the bus stand to escape from the city, survival has not been easy. Champa Devi is suffering from various health-related problems and her two married daughters have been sent to their paternal home because their in-laws could not afford their medical bills. Her nine-year-old grandson looks like a four-year-old and her granddaughter was born with deformities.
Compensation
Top lawyers admit that victims have not been able to receive adequate compensation, even after years of legal wrangling in courts, in India and abroad. The UCC settled a civil suit with the Indian Government in 1989 by agreeing to pay $ 470 million, which was then considered adequate compensation.
Considering the magnitude of the accident, the way the case was handled by the government and other agencies was unusual. The final settlement came suddenly in 1989 as the Supreme Court felt that its approval on the settlement deed would save the victims from a lengthy legal battle and awarded $ 470 million to victims. The fact that the number of victims had increased five times since the accident and was increasing every day was not taken into account.
But the question here is why such meagre compensation was considered adequate. Supreme Court lawyer S. Murlidhar, who has been involved with the case as a lawyer for victims and victim groups, has this to say: "The claims commissioner, who is a sitting high court judge, has dealt with over 10,29,173 cases and awarded compensation in 5,72,173 cases till date. As many as 12,000 cases are yet to be decided. There were 22,000 death claims, of which 7,000 were rejected outright. 15,000 were entertained and 60 per cent converted into injury claims, which in itself was absurd. Rs 85 crore was disbursed to 15,000 death claimants. On an average the next of kin of 6,300 death victims got Rs 1 lakh each. The rest got Rs 25,000. The 5.53 lakh injury cases were given Rs 1,442 crore, Rs 26,000 on an average."
On October 26 this year, the Supreme Court gave the go-ahead to disburse this November the remaining Rs 1,576 crore to those who had already received the compensation. This was the second disbursement of the amount which was left after the payment of the compensation. Acting on a plea by gas victims’ organisations, the Supreme Court ordered that this amount should also be paid to victims on a pro rata basis. "Meaning, they will get an equivalent of the amount they have already received. But this is not sufficient. Then there are several others who at that time were not been able to file for compensation. Claims counter opened for the first time between 1985 to 1989, for the second time, for a few months, in 1992-93 and for a few days in December 1996. But what about those whose symptoms manifested themselves at a later stage?"
Equally disturbing was the fact that against a preferred claim of $ 3.3 billion, a pittance of $ 470 million was settled. At the time of the final settlement, the Government of India, which had assumed the role of guardian of the victims, had been told by the apex court to meet the shortfall, if any, in the compensation amount.
Shahid Noor of Bhopal Ki Awaz, an NGO, who was only eight years old at the time of the incident and lost his parents and younger brother the very next day, has no hope as far as any more compensation is concerned. "What is being disbursed now, that is it. But our fight for cleaning up the site and protecting the environment, rehabilitation and employment and better health facilities will continue."
Chain of responsibility
Who is responsible — the UCC whose behaviour has been a clear example of irresponsible corporate practices; the Government of India, which despite enacting the Bhopal Gas Leak Disaster Act that enables it to act as the legal representative of the victims, has been unable to ensure justice or adequate compensation; or the judiciary for its inability to deliver justice and bring the guilty to book.
Smart UCC
The UCC was one of the first American companies to invest in India. Employing approximately 9,000 persons, it operated 14 plants in five divisions. The Bhopal plant was built in the late 1970s and was owned and operated by Union Carbide India Limited (UCIL) with the UCC holding just over 50 per cent of the stock. Other investors included financial institutions and thousands of private investors.
After the accident, the UCC played its cards well, like most transnational corporations who have learnt to elude moral responsibility, downplay damages and force attention and liability on a local company to escape criminal and civil liability.
Governments all over the world are yet to learn to react on a global basis to ensure that MNCs and national corporations are to be held liable for their actions and desire to cut costs at the expense of safety in developing countries. Whether safety measures designed to prevent a gas leak malfunctioned or were inadequate or the safety siren was turned of, the truth is that when the gas leaked, the UCC did not even provide full information regarding the nature of poisoning. Doctors, who did not have any prior experience in dealing with anything similar, were left groping in the dark. Methyl isocyanate, says Surendra Kumar, is 10 times more lethal than phosgene and 100 times more than chlorine, the gases used in chemical warfare.
The UCC managed to escape its liability by dumping responsibility on the Indian Government, besides cheating the victims with a paltry compensation of $ 370 to $ 533 per person. In 2001, it absolved itself completely of all responsibility by merging with the $-9.3-billion Dow Chemical, one of the largest chemical companies in the world.
Dow Chemical also refused to accept moral responsibility for the UCC’s wrong doings in Bhopal or for health problems or for cleaning up the toxic waste, even though it has do so elsewhere. Yet, it claims to be pursuing correct environment health and safety programmes.
According to Jabbar, had such a disaster happened in the USA, the waste would have been cleaned up now. If the company did not own responsibility then the government could have cleaned the site and billed the company. "Within one year of the World Trade Center incident, the site had been cleared and victims paid compensation and rehabilitated," he adds.
A Union Carbide spokesman has been quoted as saying that the company and its sole shareholder, Dow Chemical, could not be held liable for any waste clean-up at the plant or any contamination of ground water as there was no legal foundation for such liability.
According to the spokesman, the UCC had taken moral responsibility for the tragedy, but there was legal responsibility involved since the Bhopal plant was operated by the Indian subsidiary, Union Carbide India Limited (UCIL).
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After the UCC severed its relationship with UCIL in 1994, the UCIL did some clean-up operations at the site, but did not complete the task. The plant site was later bought by another Indian company. Later it was made the legal responsibility of the state government. Perhaps holding Dow Chemical responsible has its risks. With the government having opened its doors to foreign businesses, it fears that any new legal action in the 20-year-old Bhopal case could scare off foreign investors.
Role of activists
After the incident a large number of NGOs and activists took on the responsibility of resolving the compensation issue and rehabilitating victims.
Vinuta says that efforts of activists like Rashida Bi and Champa Devi and their NGO Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Stationery Karamchari Sangh and fronts like the Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Udyog Sangathan led by Abdul Jabbar have kept issue alive the world over despite best efforts by the transnational involved to kill it.
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Greenpeace and Coalition of Survivor Groups in Bhopal are demanding that Dow Chemical should assume liability for the continuing and long-term health impacts of the disaster and for the loss of livelihood as a result of the disaster, by providing employment opportunities to victims and support to those rendered destitute, remove the contamination of the ground water and soil in and around the factory and ensure that the prime accused Warren Anderson is brought to justice in the Bhopal criminal court.
Justice has eluded the people of Bhopal for over 20 years. In 1987, a Bhopal District Court charged Union Carbide officials, including the then CEO Warren Anderson, with culpable homicide, grievous assault and other serious offences. In 1992, a warrant was issued for Anderson’s arrest. All efforts to extradite Warren Anderson have proved futile. He was last sighted by a British newspaper on Long Islands, living a peaceful life and playing golf.
Picture of the victims