[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1127-E1128]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

INDIAN POLICEMAN IN GOLDEN TEMPLE WITH A REVOLVER

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HON. EDOLPHUS TOWNS

of new york

in the house of representatives

Wednesday, May 23, 2007

Mr. TOWNS. Madam Speaker, Indian policeman in temple with revolver is
not the solution to a game of Clue, it's the latest outrage out of
India. As we approach the 23rd anniversary of India's brutal military
attack on the Golden Temple, the center of the Sikh culture and
religion, an undercover Indian policeman was found carrying a revolver
into the Golden Temple, where these kinds of weapons are prohibited. It
was discovered when the gun fell out of his pocket. I shudder to think
what he may have been intending to do with it.
The chief minister of Punjab, Paraksh Singh Badal, did nothing about
this outrage because he is in bed with the Indian Government and in
opposition to his Sikh constituents. This desecration of the Golden
Temple is outrageous and a reminder that India remains an occupying
power in the Sikh homeland, Punjab, Khalistan, which declared its
independence on October 7, 1987.
The Council of Khalistan has published an open letter deploring this
desecration of the Sikh nation's most sacred site. It notes that this
is part of the Indian Government's ongoing effort to destroy the Sikh
religion and demands that the jathedar of the Akal Takht, Joginder
Singh Vedanti, censure chief Minister Badal for his part in allowing
this to occur.
We cannot continue to support such actions. They violate the
fundamental religious freedom that all free people enjoy. We must take
strong action. Cutting off aid and trade until these kinds of
atrocities end would be a good first step. And we should demand a free
and fair vote in Khalistan, in Kashmir, in Nagaland, and wherever the
people seek freedom on the subject of independence. Self-determination
is the essence of democracy.

Indian Policeman Caught at Akal Takht Sahib With Revolver

Just a few days ago, the Tribune of Chandigarh reported
that an Indian policeman was caught with a revolver at the
Akal Takht Sahib. His revolver fell on the ground. He was
manhandled by the Sikhs there.
No one is allowed to take firearms inside the Golden
Temple. By doing so, this policeman violated the Maryada of
the Golden Temple. The shameful Akali government has allowed
undercover policemen to desecrate the Golden Temple. The
Khalsa Panth condemns this with full force.
Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal should be removed from
his position and the Akal Takht Jathedar should censure him
for his sacrilege and violating the Rehat Maryada of the Akal
Takht.
The Indan government is determined to destroy the Sikh
religion by any and all means. They are trying to create
sects in the Sikh religion, such as Dera Sucha (Jhutha)
Sauda, Nirankari, Radswami, and other such cults. After Guru
Gobind Singh there is no living guru, as the heads of these
sects claim to be. That is contrary to the Sikh religion. It
is blasphemous. These Deras are a cancer on the Sikh
religion. They must not be allowed to spread their cancer and
the violence that they bring among the Sikhs.
Guru Gobind Singh Sahib bestowed the guruship on the Guru
Granth Sahib and for political decisions transferred power to
the Panj Piaras (the Five Chosen Ones.) This desecration of
Sikhism cannot be allowed to continue. It will only stop when
we free Khalistan from Indian occupation.
Badal blames Captain Amarinder Singh for this situation. He
cannot shirk his own responsibility. As Chief Minister, he is
responsible for law and order. He should prosecute this baba
and such cult leaders and close all Deras in Punjab. If he
won't do it, the Khalsa Panth will and we will find new
leaders who can serve the interests of the Khalsa Panth, not
the Indian government.
Sikhs should have known better. In 1984, it was this Akali
party and this Akali leadership of Badal, Tohra, and Longowal
who invited the Indian army into the Golden Temple. If anyone
attacks the Golden Temple, Sikhs can never forgive or forget
it. The Congress Party attacked the Golden Temple; they
should not be supported by the Khalsa Panth. It was the
Akalis who invited them in. They should also be rejected. We
need new Sikh leadership which can deliver a sovereign,
independent Khalistan to the Sikh Nation.
Power resides in the Khalsa Panth. Sikhs in Punjab must
shoulder their responsibility. Get rid of the present Akali
leadership and establish a new Sikh leadership. If we do not,
if we let this leadership linger, our misery is prolonged and
the Sikh Nation suffers more. It is time to stand up and free
the Sikh homeland, Punjab, Khalistan.
In 1986, the Sarbat Khalsa was called. The Sarbat Khalsa
formed the Panthic Committee under the leadership of Baba
Gurcharan Singh Manochahal (who was later murdered by the
Indian government.) It passed a resolution for Khalistan on
April 29, 1986. The Panthic Committee formally declared
independence on October 7, 1987. It established the Council
of Khalistan at that time to serve as the government pro
tempore of Khalistan and appointed this humble sewadar as
President of the Council of Khalistan.
For the past 20 years, I have worked very hard, along with
all the advisors and supporters of the Council of Khalistan,
to achieve our objective of sovereignty for Khalistan. Any
major event in Punjab since 1984 has been documented in the
Congressional Record in statements by various Members of
Congress. We thank them for their support for the
independence of Khalistan. Congressional hearings were held
in the U.S. Congress by Rep. Ben Blaz, Rep. Dan Burton,

[[Page E1128]]

and others on human-rights violations and the independence of
Khalistan. Special orders of the U.S. Congress on human-
rights violations and the independence of Khalistan have been
conducted. The Indian government is trying to alter the Sikh
history in Punjab since 1984. They will not succeed because
it is preserved in the library of the U.S. Congress. It will
lie there safely for a long time. Students of history will
find the true story of what happened to the Sikh Nation since
1984.
Khalsa Ji, the time has come for Sikhs to unite and free
Khalistan. Remember the words of Guru Gobind Singh, ``I grant
sovereignty to the humble Sikhs.'' Freedom is the birthright
of all people and nations. It is also granted by our Gurus.
The Indian government is so afraid that it is planting agents
in Gurdwara committees and organizations that fight for
Khalistan. It is creating Deras and planting agents in the
Golden Temple to try to stoke violence. It is arresting Sikh
activists for protesting a statue of the repressive,
murderous Beant Singh, who was responsible for the murder of
over 50,000 Sikhs and the secret cremation of their bodies by
declaring them ``unidentified'', as well as the murders of
Sardar Jaswant Singh Khalra, who exposed that brutal policy,
and Jathedar Gurdev Singh Kaunke, or for making pro-
Khalistani speeches and raising the flag of Khalistan. Beware
of Sikh leaders who do the bidding of the Indian government.
Just the other day in the Southall Gurdwara in the United
Kingdom, Sikh youth took control of the stage when the
present management, which is under the control of the Indian
Embassy, refused to do Ardas for Shaheed Bhai Kanwaljit
Singh, who was killed by followers of the cult leader Ram
Rahim when he went to confront them. We must replace these
management committees with pro-Sikh, pro-Khalistani
managements.
Khalsa Ji, the time has come. Take responsibility and rise
to the occasion. Work for the freedom of Khalistan so that
the Sikh religion can flourish and the Sikh Nation can live
with honor and dignity. Only then can the future of the
Khalsa Panth be bright. Remember the words of the former
Jathedar of the Akal Takht Sahib, Professor Darshan Singh,
that ``If a Sikh is not a Khalistani, he is not a Sikh.'' Let
us show true Sikh spirit. We must rise up and free Khalistan
now.

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