Farooq flags off Khalsa march
JAMMU, Dec 15 Shouting "Jo Bole So Nihal, Sat
Sri Akal" more than 10,000 Sikh pilgrims marched
from Digiana Ashram today to reach Anandpur Sahib via
Amritsar in connection with the 300th anniversary of the
birth of the Khalsa.
The Chief Minister, Dr
Farooq Abdullah, flagged off the Khalsa march. The
pilgrims were led by Panj Piaras. Before the start of the
march a turban was tied to the head of Dr Farooq
Abdullah.
Several Sikh organisations
have joined hands to make suitable arrangements for the
pilgrims. The Gurdwara Parbandhak Board headed by Mr
Sudarshan Singh Wazir and other Akali leaders had pooled
their resources to arrange several hundred buses,
matadors, cars and cabs for the pilgrims.
The long caravan of
pilgrims was greeted on national highway from Jammu to
Madhopur where senior Punjab Akali Dal leaders received
them. For another two days large groups of Sikh pilgrims
from all over this border state will march to Anandpur
Sahib.
Besides Mahant Manjit
Singh of Nangali Sahib, several ministers and legislators
were present at Digiana from where the Khalsa march took
off. The Chief Minister drove with the pilgrims for a few
kilometres and then returned to the winter capital.
Addressing the pilgrims,
Dr Abdullah expressed concern over the role of some
vested interests in creating a wedge between the Punjab
Chief Minister, Mr Parkash Singh Badal, and the SGPC
chief, Mr Gurcharan Singh Tohra. He said the differences
among Akali leaders would be harmful not only for the
Sikh community, but for the whole country.
The Chief Minister called
upon Akali leaders to cement their differences and not
allow the vested interests to create political and
religious problems for the state and the country.
Referring to the
difficulties being created by Pakistan in allowing Sikh
pilgrims from Jammu and Kashmir to visit shrines in
Pakistan, Dr Abdullah said he would take up the issue
again with the Prime Minister, Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee,
so that he (Mr Vajpayee) could request his counterpart,
Mr Nawaz Sharif, to simplify the visa process. He said,
"The Sikh sangat wants to offer prayers at Nankana
Sahib and seek spiritual bliss in the shrines in
Pakistan. They are not going there to create disturbances
and hence there seems to be no reason in singling out the
Sikhs of Jammu and Kashmir for preventing them from
visiting the shrines."
He said a large number of
people from across the border visited Ajmer Sharif and it
was hoped that Islamabad would reciprocate the gesture.
The Chief Minister
referring to yesterday's visit to Moga said Punjab had
started coming back on the rails after 10 years of
militancy and much progress had been achieved during the
past several years. He hoped that peace and normalcy
would return to Jammu and Kashmir shortly.
He urged the people to
promote communal amity.
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