Selected Editorials - The Sikh Bulletin

Also included in the very beginning of this issue are three previous editorials from The Sikh Bulletin and
an article by late Principal Harbhajan Singh, ‘Which ‘banis’ did the Tenth Guru recite at the time of
administering ‘amrit’ A reading of his research reveals that of the eleven sources he found, some of
them claiming to be present at the 1699 Vaisakhi ceremony, no two agree as to what transpired and none
of them agrees with what is happening today. In spite of my best efforts I have not found any Sikh scholar
who could throw some light on the evolution of khande-di-pahul banis. But I am not hesitant to hazard a
guess.
In his article in this issue on p. 104 Dr Gurmel Singh Sidhu attributes introduction of Dasam
Granth as Sikh scripture to the British. This could very well be the case. British were masters of the art
of ‘divide and conquer’. They did not hesitate to overwhelmingly recruit Sikhs in their army and they
made khande-di-pahul mandatory for all the Sikh soldiers, built Gurdwaras in Sikh cantonments and GGS
was always at the head of Sikh troops in both world wars. It would be the British who introduced three
of five banis into khande-di-pahul and nitnem through their hired Sikh hands much the same way as
right wing Hindu extremists have hired hands among Sikhs today to carry on what the British started.
They succeeded remarkably well in sowing discord among us. Dasam Granth as the source of three out
five banis for khande-di-pahul is Mr. Lamba’s strongest argument. Dr. Gurmel Singh Sidhu quotes
Giani Gian Singh in his Panth Parkash attributing authorship of Dasam Granth to Patna Granthi
Sucha Singh and his son Charat Singh in this issue on page104.
At the same time the British entrusted our Gurdwaras to Mahants who introduced anti Gurmat practices in
our historical Gurdwaras thus giving us a split personality. They also released from the military service
scores of ‘Sants’ starting with Mastuanewala Sant and the fauji who ‘discovered’ Hemkunt. Research
might also show that Bhai Randhir Singh Grewal, the founder of Akhand Kirtani Jatha, whose father was
an employee of the British, was a British plant. How else does one explain his ardent and blind
endorsement of Dasam Granth as the creation of Guru Gobind Singh and that too in its entirety
As a result of efforts of Singh Sabha Lehr a reformation started. SGPC and Akali Dal came into existence
but first the British and then the Congress government of free India corrupted both of these institutions.
RSS replaced the British in pushing Dasam Granth down our throats. Panth Ratan Tohra got co-opted by
Congress and Badal saw his fortunes tied with the RSS and its political wing, BJP. Between the two of
them they have made a nice mess of Sikh aspirations.
Lots of people I know, myself included, have often wondered at the sad state of Sikh affairs in India. In
my opinion it has to do to a great extent with the mind set of those people who are in the fore front to do
something good but at just the crucial moments self interest raises its ugly head. Here I would like to
share my personal experiences with three people of diverse back grounds:
1. Prof. Darshan Singh, Sabka Jathedar Akal Takhat, was invited by us in 1994 to perform kirtan/katha at
the Nanaksar Thath Isher Darbar, started by an akhauti saadh ‘Sant Baba’ Amar Singh Barundi in
Roseville, California. He had claimed to be gurbhai of Darshan Singh. Darshan Singh, who knew Amar
Singh since his 8 th birth day because both of them were from original Nanaksar Thath of Nand
Singh/Isher Singh, was offered a golden opportunity to come clean about Amar Singh as a sociopath,
psychopath, rapist and murderer but instead chose a safer path, for himself, of making an excuse about
being busy but certainly sometime in the future.
Ten years later, in 2004, he along with all the big Whigs from India, was a guest of Amar Singh at his
Thath in London and when confronted about his judgment while being fully aware of Amar Singh’s
kartoots, he pleaded pressure but that he had them remove pictures of Nand Singh/Isher Singh from the
presence of GGS and had spoken against santdom. Problem, however, was that he provided Amar Singh
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