ROPAR, Punjab—In a bid to discourage Sikh’s from attending the ‘Sarbat Khalsa’ (nationwide gathering), the Shiv Sena (violent Hindu extremist group) appear to have tried to stoke Sikh responses by issuing statements in newspapers which could inflame tensions further.
In a statement published in Hindi newspaper ‘Dainik Bhaskar’, Shiv Sena’s Punjab Chief Sachin Ghanauli has said that their activists will also attend the ‘Sarbat Khalsa’ going to be held on November 10 in village Chabba near Amritsar.
Sachin Ghanauli has said that their intention was to prevent ‘Sarbat Khalsa’ from concluding with a view to demanding a separate state as its goal. He added that if they noticed slogans of ‘Khalistan’ during ‘Sarbat Khalsa’ then they would immediately retaliate appropraitely.
Terming the Shiv Sena’s statement as an attempt to disturb peace in Punjab, S. Baljit Singh Khalsa (Editor of Magazine ‘Vangaar’) said that it’s just a government policy to discourage people and attempt to scupper the event. He advised that there should be no reaction to it.