Sustained activity over three days by Lok Insaaf Party MLAs Balwinder Singh Bains, Simarjit Singh Bains, human rights activist and WSN editor Jagmohan Singh results in Odisha government assurance of accepting Sikh demands to retain Sikh heritage sites at Mangu Mutt, Punjabi Mutt and Gurdwara Baoli Sahib Mutt.

LEADERS OF THE LOK INSAAF PARTY from Punjab and Sikh Sangat prayed at Mangu Mutt, met and petitioned Governor Odisha Governor Ganeshi Lal, held a protest march from Gurdwara Singh Sabha to Canteen Square and a protest sit-in at Canteen Square with local Sikh Sangat in Bhubaneswar, culminating in submission of a strongly worded submission to Odisha Chief Minister through Odisha Minister of State for Home Captain Divya Shankar Mishra.

Odisha three-time MLA Bobby Das and the official Temple administrator of Lord Jagannath Temple Mr Krishna, accepted the contention of the delegates and accepted the Sikh demand regarding restoration and preservation of Sikh heritage in Puri.

The Sikh community can heave a sigh of relief that on 23 December 2019 that the demands of the Sikh community, regarding building Gurdwara Aarti Sahib at the Mangu Mutt place, an appropriate memorial or Gurdwara Sahib at the Punjabi Mutt area and construction of the Gurdwara Baoli Mutt without destroying its character and old design has been accepted.

I thank the government of Shri Naveen Patnaik for clearing the air and expressly stating that the government will honour Sikh sentiments and take full steps to establish Gurdwara Aarti Sahib at the Mangu Mutt site.

-Simarjit Singh Bains, MLA

This has come as sweet news for conservation activist Anil Dhir and social activist and advocate Sukhvinder Kaur who have put their heart and soul to protect and restore Guru Nanak’s glorious heritage. These two activists who have been tiresomely upholding the cause accompanied the delegation throughout the three days.

Speaking exclusively to WSN editor Jagmohan Singh who was part of the delegation, Simarjit Singh Bains said, “I thank the government of Shri Naveen Patnaik for clearing the air and expressly stating that the government will honour Sikh sentiments and take full steps to establish Gurdwara Aarti Sahib at the Mangu Mutt site.”

SGPC member and MLA Balwinder Singh Bains said, “Guru Nanak’s blessings have prevailed and we will spare no effort to take this to its logical conclusion.”

WSN has most reliably learnt that the  Acti g Jathedar of Akal Takht Sahib Giani Harpreet Singh directed the father-son duo of Shamsher Singh and Jagdip Singh to change the name of the Gurdwara they have constructed years ago on the seafront and which has the misnomer Gurdwara Aarti Sahib.

Guru Nanak’s blessings have prevailed and we will spare no effort to take this to its logical conclusion.

Balwinder Singh Bains, MLA

Despite making time, Jagdip Singh failed to meet the Punjab delegation. It remains to be seen if he will accept the direction odd the  Akal Takht Sahib or adopt a confrontation approach.

The Temple administrator Mr Krishna and  MLA Bobby Das assured that there will be no further demolition and they will revisit the agreement with SGPC regarding the reconstruction of Gurdwara Baoli Sahib and while drawing the design and layout of the corridor around the Lord Jagannath Temple, to incorporate Sikh interests.

The memorandum to the Chief Minister read, “This historic Mangu Mutt is actually the Gurdwara Aarti Sahib bearing the signature of the footsteps of Guru Nanak when he reached the Lord Jagannath Temple for inter-faith dialogue as part of his long journeys -Udasis in the fifteenth century.”

“The government of Odisha may take up the development of a historic Guru Nanak Heritage Corridor -the path taken by Guru Nanak Sahib during his visit to various parts of Odisha and Eastern India. This will catapult Odisha into the forefront of commemorative activities of the 550th Birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Sahib and will be cherished by the Sikhs worldwide in the same spirit as the Kartarpur Corridor.”

Jagmohan Singh, Human rights activist

WSN editor Jagmohan Singh pointed out that the Sikh community is so disturbed that since the day a big chunk of the Mangu Mutt was demolished, Sikh Jathas have started visiting the place in Puri and we are witness to tears and emotional outbursts on seeing the demolished place, with relics lying in the debris and a hurried construction underway to obliterate all signs of the past.”

The exhaustive document presented by the Lok Insaaf Party started, “These Mutts -hospices bear full references to the visit of Guru Nanak to Puri and it is our clear contention that it would be a travesty of history to either demolish or disorient these historic and religious places in a neo-modern design as part of an ill-conceived beautification and expansion programme to create a corridor around the Lord Jagannath Temple in Puri.”

Not only this, the Bains brothers warned that “Our submission to you is an expression of the yearnings of the Sikhs and we wish to categorically declare that by ignoring Sikh concerns you will find the Sikh community at your door protesting and contesting these illegal steps of the Odisha government in the typical Sikh format of a sustained Morcha in the near future.”

Human rights activist Jagmohan Singh asserted to the Home Minister that “the government of Odisha may take up the development of a historic Guru Nanak Heritage Corridor -the path taken by Guru Nanak Sahib during his visit to various parts of Odisha and Eastern India. This will catapult Odisha into the forefront of commemorative activities of the 550th Birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Sahib and will be cherished by the Sikhs worldwide in the same spirit as the Kartarpur Corridor.”

The Lok Insaaf Party delegation included Jaswinder Singh Khalsa, Jaswant Singh Gajjanmajra, Jaswant Singh, Jarnail Singh Sibia, Gurjot Singh and Shri Vinayak from Ludhiana.

The delegation also visited Biramchipur village, nearly 150 kilometres from Bhubaneswar where Guru Nanak Naam Leva Odiya brethren have preserved  Kara, which they claim was handed over to their forefathers when Guru Nanak travelled on foot on the Old Jagannath Road. They also had a handwritten manuscript of Asa di Vaar.

A media team from Punjab also accompanied the delegation.