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Canwest News Service
A traditionalist youth slate has won an overwhelming victory in elections at Surrey’s Guru Nanak Sikh temple over an incumbent moderate group that had run the temple for more than a decade.
The mostly Canadian-born Sikh Youth Slate, which used Internet-based social networking sites, won 13,458 votes to the incumbent faction’s 7,257 votes.
“We all expected in the last few days that the youth slate would win. But we never really thought they would win in such a big fashion,” said Harjinder Thind, a talk show host on Red FM, which serves the Punjabi community.
“People wanted a change because they were not satisfied with the previous administration.”
Thind said the youth slate, headed by insurance broker Bikramjit Singh Sandhar, ran a “very smooth Barack Obama-style campaign” while the incumbent group alienated many temple members with negative fear-mongering.
A big issue in the election was the same one that sparked fights at the temple in 1996 and 1997: an edict from India to remove tables and chairs in the dining rooms.
The youth slate wanted members to eat on mats but agreed to a compromise so that the elderly and disabled would be able to use tables and chairs.
“That compromise was a key factor in winning the moderate vote,” Thind said.
Many temple members also believed that the old guard had not been “up to snuff” and had allowed the temple’s cleanliness to deteriorate, he added.
The rejection of the old-guard slate also represents a desire for more democracy in temple politics, said Satwinder Bains, director at the Centre for Indo-Canadian Studies at the University of the Fraser Valley.
“The old guard was a very small, close-knit group. Very few people held power,” Bains said.
“Hopefully, under the youth slate the temple will be more open, more egalitarian and more transparent.”
Bains said the youth-slate victory signals a shift in the Sikh community in which “young people who are educated are trying to interpret what the Sikh faith should be in today’s world.”
Bains said the youth slate members were very liberal despite their push for more traditional practices.
“And they are doing what the Sikh faith says they should do: Give food to the needy, for example. And not just to Sikhs. Some of them go give food on the Downtown Eastside.”
Sikh temples are as much political institutions as places of worship. They have control over substantial real estate holdings and millions of dollars in donations. They also have significant electoral clout with politicians.
University of the Fraser Valley’s Bains said it is too early to say whether this new group will favour one party over the other. “But I can tell you that all political parties will be looking at this new group with interest.”
Sukhminder Singh Virk, an official with the victorious youth slate, said the table-and-chairs issue, along with old categories of “moderate” and “fundamentalist,” no longer define Sikh temple politics. “We are young, progressive, Canadian-born Sikhs and our focus is on the community here.”
Virk, 26, is a graduate of Simon Fraser University who recently completed a law degree in Britain. Virk said his group can reach out to young Sikhs, and promote Sikhism to counter gang and domestic violence.
Maninder Gill, managing director of Radio India, said the old-guard moderate faction was hurt by infighting.
Gill also said the youth slate was not connected with groups which promoted a Sikh homeland in India called Khalistan.
“They are not associated with any previous groups such as Babbar Khalsa or the ISYF [International Sikh Youth Federation], and the old fundamentalist leaders,” Gill said.
“They are a new vision.”
dward@vancouversun.com
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Sikhs must act within the periphery of Sri Guru Granth Sahib and the elected young members should swear to perform, send the message and impart the teachings accordingly, without creating religious controversies and confrontations in any manner. Submission by Balbir Singh Sooch-Sikh Vichar Manch
The new face of Canada’s Sikhs
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/british-columbia/the-new-face-of-canadas-sikhs/article1365825/
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In 1708, before his death, Guru Gobind Singh affirmed the Adi Granth as the perpetual Guru of the Sikhs and the Granth then became known as the Sri Guru Granth Sahib.
Guru Gobind Singh Guru (1666-1708), the tenth Guru in Sikh tradition, affirmed the sacred text Adi Granth as his successor, terminating the line of human Gurus, and elevating the text to Guru Granth Sahib. From that point on, the text remained not only the holy scripture of the Sikhs, but is also regarded by them as the living embodiment of the Ten Gurus. The role of Guru Granth Sahib, as a source or guide of prayer, is pivotal in worship in Sikhism.
To remove or dispell any aberrations created, the tercentenary celebrations of Sri Guru Granth Sahib was celebrated at large scale to educate the Sikh masses; the holy city of Nanded, where the event was held, is undergoing a remarkable metamorphosis This has been the understanding and conviction of the Sikhs, since that October day of 1708. That’s why even in the present era Sri Guru Granth Sahib has been given status of juristic person.
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Related Comment:
Who says what, religiously or insultingly to that extent or level and let such issues be decided by God Himself? Here issue should not be ‘Ragi’ or persons like me, ‘Sooch’ or someone else.
The worldly people like us should not sit to decide and pass judgment in such matters of religious ignorance.
The process of summoning to such people at Sri Akal Takhat Sahib was always more political than, for the reasons, intentionally and deliberately, of their religious contempt.
As somebody said, “This rogue ragi is an agent of congress”. Though, addressing in this fashion in religious matters to anyone must not be appealing to any prudent man. To my mind, everybody is religious and that may be directly in proportional to his wit and awareness, those always vary man to man.
In case, it is the ground for summoning that ‘ragi was rogue and an agent of congress’ and behaving in the manner, then, the Five Singh Sahibans should not have summoned at all to give him undue importance at Sri Akal Takhat Sahib.
Or is he being summoned under the undue pressure and influence of Congress to give importance to him who is being said only 10 grade pass?
All these questions were debatable before summoning him.
But, here, it is material and acceptable to all Siks that, “In 1708, before his death, Guru Gobind Singh (1666-1708) affirmed the Adi Granth as the perpetual Guru of the Sikhs and the Granth then became known as the Sri Guru Granth Sahib. the tenth Guru in Sikh tradition, affirmed the sacred text Adi Granth as his successor, terminating the line of human Gurus, and elevating the text to Guru Granth Sahib” not to any other Granth”.
In view of the acceptable fact and in violation to it, we should not create religious controversies and confrontations among Sikhs in any manner.
Comment by Balbir Singh Sooch, Advocate, Ludhiana
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The Issue Seems Like To Make A Mountain Of A Mole Hill
The issue seems like to ‘make a mountain of a mole hill’ and finally, after appearing at Sri Akal Takhat Sahib, Ragi would be the hero politically and religiously as experienced in the past in such cases.
The Ragi may have narrated the story, “Guru Sahib went to a prostitute, he thought if he had relations with her the offspring will be a bharua (pimp). His beard was pulled and he was given shoe beating”, under some kind of intoxication in reference to some other context, in order to further stress upon his point in the context, otherwise, he should have never uttered the words in the manner.
In case, he has a little bit respect and sincerity to his Guru, never could have thought dreamily to narrate the story insultingly. He must be having some explanation to the words said or the story narrated inadvertently.
Again, without letting to lose the focus, the earlier expressed views are very relevant to avoid such religious controversies and confrontations among Sikhs and the solution could be found within ‘Sri Guru Granth Sahib’.
Please continue discussion on the forum: link