SPF calls for community support for candidates committed to Sikh rights
STATE TIMES NEWS
JAMMU: Balvinder Singh, a prominent RTI activist and President of the Sikh Progressive Front (SPF), along with key members Manjit Singh (General Secretary) and Rajinder Singh Sudan (Joint Secretary), addressed the media today to underscore longstanding issues facing the Sikh community in Jammu and Kashmir Union Territory (JKUT).
They expressed frustration over the persistent neglect of Sikh demands by successive governments, despite the community’s significant contributions to the region and the nation. Balvinder Singh criticized the “step-motherly” treatment of Sikhs by past administrations and announced that the Sikh Progressive Front will only endorse candidates from political parties that explicitly commit to addressing Sikh interests in their manifestos.
The SPF reiterated several key demands which include to establish Punjabi as a subject from primary to higher education levels, include Punjabi in the JKUT Official Language Bill 2020, provide political reservation for Sikhs, similar to provisions for SC, ST, OBC, Pahari, Gujjar, and Pandit communities, either under the Migrant Quota or POJK Quota, to ensure Sikh representation in the State Assembly, extend the special employment package under SRO 412, which currently benefits Pandits, to include Sikh youths from the valley within the non-migrant quota, grant OBC status to 54,000 Sikhs residing in Kashmir, implement the National Minority Commission Act in JKUT, and to move the statue of Baba Banda Singh Bahadur from the 4th Bridge to Kunjwani Chowk. During the press conference, SPF members, including Manjit Singh, Rajinder Singh Sudan, Tejinder Singh (Member DGPC Jammu), Kuldip Singh (Advocate), T.P Singh, Iqbal Singh, Janak Singh, Harmohinder Singh (President Displaced Kashmiri Sikhs Conference), and Jaswinder Singh, urged the Sikh community to unite and hold accountable the candidates from previous ruling parties for failing to address Sikh demands despite numerous representations to high-profile officials including the Prime Minister, Home Minister, LG JKUT Manoj Sinha, Chairman NMC Iqbal Singh Lalpura, and Hardeep Singh Puri.
They expressed astonishment that the current ruling dispensation, which has been in power since February 24, 2015, is now soliciting feedback from Sikh organizations for inclusion in their 2024 election manifesto.
The SPF emphasized the importance of voting for parties or candidates who have demonstrated a genuine commitment to addressing Sikh grievances and incorporating their demands into their election platforms.
Balvinder Singh and other SPF leaders called for a collective effort from the Sikh community to ensure that their needs and concerns are adequately addressed in the upcoming political landscape.
