Sri Amritsar- Giani Kuldip Singh Gargajj, Jathedar of Sri Akal Takht Sahib, today visited village Sekhewal near the Mattewara forest to specifically review the issue of the Punjab Government and Greater Ludhiana Area Development Authority (GLADA) allegedly destroying villagers’ crops and taking possession of their land.
Speaking about the harsh action taken by the Punjab Government against the Rangreta Sikh community of the village, he said that on one hand, the government claims to be commemorating the 350th martyrdom anniversary of Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur Sahib, while on the other hand, it is revealing its anti-Sikh mindset by inflicting atrocities on the descendants of Bhai Jeevan Singh (Bhai Jaita Ji) on the very day associated with the cremation of Guru’s sacred head.
He said that after the cancellation of the Mattewara project, the Punjab Government had promised that the village land would be returned to the Panchayat. But now, after destroying Mohali’s Lakhnour forest to hand it over to a commercial group, the government is uprooting the inhabited area of this village to plant a forest. He called this behaviour absurd and shameful in itself.
On this occasion, he appealed to the entire Panth to stand united with these impoverished Sikh families and support them in their struggle. He said he wished to remind the Punjab Government that the Guru’s Rangreta Sikhs and the wider Sikh community are spread not only across Punjab but across the world, and the authorities must not make the mistake of assuming these poor Sikh families are alone. The entire Khalsa Panth stands with them.
He asked the Punjab Government to reconsider such decisions. He said it is the duty of governments to use their policies to settle and uplift poor communities and work for their welfare—not to uproot and dispossess them.