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NEWS & VIEWS113are optimistic that the International <strong>Sikh</strong> Confederation will achieve ageneral acceptance and will come into being on this auspiciousoccasion – Guru Nanak Dev ji’s birth anniversary. We are optimisticthat this august <strong>Sikh</strong> gathering <strong>of</strong> global <strong>Sikh</strong>s will lay the foundationstone <strong>of</strong> the ISC by selecting an ad hoc governing council to giveconcrete effect to the establishment <strong>of</strong> a great <strong>Sikh</strong> Organisation whichwill represent us in Punjab, India and the whole wide world.~~~2Chandigarh, November 12, 2005. A two-day international <strong>Sikh</strong>Convention for the Constitution <strong>of</strong> proposed International <strong>Sikh</strong>Confederation, an Apex Body <strong>of</strong> the <strong>Sikh</strong>s began at the <strong>Institute</strong> <strong>of</strong><strong>Sikh</strong> <strong>Studies</strong> here today.The opening session started with an inaugural address by DrKharak Singh, who emphasised the urgent necessity <strong>of</strong> establishingISC for the resolution <strong>of</strong> various pending issues. He also clarified thatISC will be a purely non-political global organisation comprising therepresentatives <strong>of</strong> established <strong>Sikh</strong> institutions and eminent <strong>Sikh</strong>individuals which will strengthen the primary existing <strong>Sikh</strong> institutionslike the SGPC and the Akal Takht, Shiromani Akali Dal and ChiefKhalsa Diwan, etc. He also revealed that earlier efforts in the form <strong>of</strong>World <strong>Sikh</strong> Organisation had failed. The ISC will endeavour toascertain the outstanding issues confronting the <strong>Sikh</strong> diaspora, diagonisethe reasons for the degeneration, suggest remedies for the resolution<strong>of</strong> these issues and provide intellectual inputs to the concernedleadership <strong>of</strong> various <strong>Sikh</strong> organisations. He also declared that an adhoc committee <strong>of</strong> the ISC would be constituted at the end <strong>of</strong> thisInternational Conclave.Lt Gen Kartar Singh Gill, member <strong>of</strong> the Core Group <strong>of</strong> theAction Committee then presented the basic principles on which theISC constitution is based. These in short are (a) to give representationto <strong>Sikh</strong> residents in India and the world over in totality; (b) to givepriority to our Institutions / Gurudwaras and then to eminent citizens;(c) a constitution that is acceptable to a majority <strong>of</strong> global <strong>Sikh</strong>s based ontrue <strong>Sikh</strong> Maryada, and; d) help our existing organisations to flourish.The adoption <strong>of</strong> a selective-cum-elective system was also discussed.Various delegates from India and abroad who spoke at the
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