New Delhi, May 1
The historical gurdwara in Iraq suffered only minor damage in the US-led bombing, says the Indian Embassy in its report to the External Affairs Minister, Mr Yashwant Sinha.

“There is no damage to the building except that glasses of two windows have been shattered,” an Indian Embassy official, who visited the gurdwara site to assess the damage where Guru Nanak had stayed in the 16th century, informed the External Affairs Minister.

“The Indian Embassy would arrange to repair the damage on a priority basis as soon as the situation permits and the gurdwara is now under our care,” said Mr Sinha in a communication to the Chairman of the National Commission for Minorities, Mr Tarlochan Singh.

The NCM head had urged the External Affairs Ministry to send an official of the Indian Embassy to assess the damage following concerns expressed by members of the Sikh community in the country and abroad.

Interestingly, the NCM chief’s letter urging the External Affairs Minister to verify the claims of damage to the gurdwara comes within days of the Punjab Chief Minister, Capt Amarinder Singh, writing to the US Ambassador, expressing his government’s willingness to rebuild it.

The BJP had criticised the Punjab Government’s move to directly communicate with the US Ambassador by bypassing the usual protocol of forwarding the communication through the External Affairs Ministry.

Political observers said the move by both the Punjab Chief Minister and the NCM chief was marred with political overtones aimed at garnering political dividends during the Lok Sabha poll slated for next year.

They said Mr Tarlochan Singh was close to the Shiromani Akali Dal and was playing a pivotal role in forging unity between the SAD chief, Mr Parkash Singh Badal, and the Sarb Hind Shiromani Akali Dal, led by a former SGPC chief, Mr Gurcharan Singh Tohra.

Mr Tarlochan Singh said the gurdwara was located near a railway yard adjacent to the tomb of a Muslim saint Behlol. The shrine had no “formal gurdwara framework” and was housed in a three-room structure. Two of the rooms had tombs and one was used for Sikh religious congregations, he added.