The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), the body responsible for the management of gurudwaras, on Thursday condemned the release of a booklet titled ‘Sri Kashi Vishwanath Dham Ka Gauravshali Itihas’ by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the inauguration of the Vishwanath Dham corridor and demanded a complete ban on it.
SGPC media secretary Kulwinder Singh Ramdas said that the history of the Sikh faith had been distorted and misrepresented in the booklet.
“The booklet states that the Panj Piaras (five beloved ones), through whom the Khalsa Panth was founded by Guru Gobind Singh (the tenth Guru), were first sent to Kashi so that they could attain full knowledge of the ‘Sanatan Dharam’ and be ready for its protection. The booklet also states that the Sikh faith was established to protect the ‘Sanatan Dharam’ from the Mughals. Both these statements are devoid of facts, with illusory intentions and lack of knowledge about the mission of the Sikh faith,” said Mr. Ramdas.
Mr. Ramdas said that, in fact, the ‘Khalsa Panth’ was formed to protect religious values and human rights against oppression, tyranny and injustice, and not to protect the ‘Sanatan Dharam’. “Secondly, the five Sikhs sent to Kashi are totally different from the Panj Piaras who offered their heads at the time of the formation of the Khalsa at Sri Anandpur Sahib,” he added.
