Despite being proven a debauch by the judiciary and in spite of overwhelming evidence of his unlawful approach to policing, KPS Gill was a darling of the Indian state and the Indian media. All Indian newspapers, including the Tribune, do not spare a chance to eulogise his ‘monumental contribution’ towards peace in Punjab. He was the worst human rights violator of the last century in Punjab. His legacy is being forwarded by his son-in-law Ajay Sahni through his writings, who uses prime space easily provided by The Tribune to float unfounded stories of “Sikh Terrorism”. In a sharp reaction, Dal Khalsa spokesperson Kanwar Pal Singh rebuts his perverted logic and presents the Sikh nationalist viewpoint.

FIRST, they called us Khalistanis. Now they have added the word “Terrorists”. First, they blamed Pakistan for supporting us. Now Canada is also on the list.  First, they sought sanctions against Pakistan. Now they propose the same with Canada.

All this is being done to malign the Sikh image worldwide and to portray the Sikhs as mindless and violent persons.

The write-up “Canada’s double game” carried in the columns of ‘The Tribune’ is a deliberate and willful attempt to portray the Sikh struggle for the right to self-determination as a design of some foreign forces.

The writer of this article Ajay Sahni, who heads Institute for Conflict Management, is the son-in-law of former Punjab police chief KPS Gill, notorious as the Butcher of Punjab.

While Gill harmed the Sikhs physically by using extra-judicial violent means, his son-in-law is maligning the image of Sikhs with his pen. The article carried by The Tribune on its opinion page has stereotype allegations against Sikhs in tune with the Punjab policy of the Indian state.

The content of the article is full of hate nurtured by the writer and his mentors against Sikhs. He goes hammer and tongs against Canada without any proof whatsoever, in the same vein as the Chief Minister of Punjab. Not surprisingly, he has a word of praise for Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh, who has once again started his anti-Canada diatribe by urging Modi dispensation to approach the United Nations and seek sanctions against Canada.

https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/comment/canada-s-double-game/792127.html

By continuously questioning the credentials of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his cabinet colleagues, a section of Indian media and Punjab CM Captain Amarinder Singh has repeatedly offended the political sensibilities of Canada -a Commonwealth associate of India- and unleashed a tirade against the Sikh Diaspora which has been making the right moves on Canadian soil, raising human rights concern and endorsing the call for the right to self-determination.

Indian politicians refuse to recognise that Canada is known for its open, mature and vibrant democracy. While in India the right to freedom of expression and to hold independent thoughts is only on paper, in countries like Canada, it is practised in letter and spirit.

The theories and allegations about the Kanishka bombing are oft-repeated and still baseless. Nobody is sure, even after 35 years, who executed the bombing and why?

Let’s be clear: The Sikh struggle has clearly defined agenda. We have our rightful aspirations. We have a political cause to fight for. Punjab belongs to all its citizens, be it Hindus, Muslims, Christians, Dalits or Sikhs. We give respect to all and we expect the same from them.

We don’t believe in senseless and arbitrary violence as like the one perpetrated by the Indian government in Punjab, Kashmir and the North-east.

The Punjab conflict needs a political resolution as per the aspirations of the people, but certainly, not one brokered or suggested by KPS Gill-inspired Institute of Conflict Management.

Sikhs strongly believe that the international community and Indian civil society have a role to play for lasting peace in this region.