Chandigarh, Aug 18 — Punjab Congress president Amarinder Singh Raja Warring has written to Union Home Minister Amit Shah, urging him to direct security agencies and state governments to create awareness about Sikh articles of faith, particularly the kirpan, to avoid situations that hurt religious sentiments.
In his letter, Warring referred to recent incidents where devout Sikhs were barred from entering venues because they were carrying a kirpan, which is one of the five articles of faith for Sikhs.
He cited the denial of entry to a Gursikh Sarpanch from Nabha, Punjab, who had been invited as a VIP guest to the Independence Day celebrations at the Red Fort but was stopped from entering the enclosure because he was carrying a kirpan.
“It is sad and unfortunate that a Gursikh Sarpanch from Nabha in Punjab was denied entry to the VIP enclosure for watching the Independence Day celebrations in Delhi, despite having been invited for the occasion,” Warring wrote.
While acknowledging the role of security personnel, he added, “It is understandable that the security personnel may have acted out of ignorance about the articles of faith in the Sikh religion, which includes the kirpan as one of such five articles of faith.”
The Congress leader stressed that it was the government’s duty to ensure security personnel are sensitised on such issues. “Those at the cutting edge need to be sensitised about such serious and sensitive matters, lest they end up hurting the religious sentiments of people,” he wrote.
Warring also pointed to another incident in Rajasthan where a Gursikh girl was reportedly stopped from entering an examination hall because she was carrying a kirpan.
He urged the Home Minister to issue a clear advisory to all security agencies and state governments to prevent such occurrences in the future.
