The Top 5 SikhCountdownof2007: Events thatwill impact 2008 P11

Sikhi Message Sewacelebrates GuruGranth SahibTercentenary P13

Film on MaharajaDuleep Singhreleases inNew York P23

Kalam Nishan Singh

KARACHI/ISLAMABAD:

Erashave a way ofending;some taperoffgradually while some changein as much time as it takes a shotto fire or a human bomb to pressthe button.On December 27,Pakistan watched BenazirBhutto's assassination markingexactly such a point.Though itwill take some time for the dis-passionate analyses to emerge,inher death,Benazir lived up to hername.Rarely has the subconti-nent witnessed someone as braveas her who knew death wasbrushing her by but continued tostare it in the face,determined toplay a role in her nation's destinyand sure that it was her fate tolead Pakistan.The Daughter ofthe East wentdown in history as a martyr,andproved that bravery could be astrain so redeeming that it canforce the world to overlook evenher role in backing the Taliban.A son has risen,and a husbandtoo,after her death.Will it meana new sun rise for Pakistan?Unfortunately,her death wasfollowed by a row over how shewent.Gun shots and humanbomb,and then came along anInterior Ministry spokespersonsaying she hit against the sun-rooflever,lost a lot ofblood andthat was all.That brought for-ward people who claimed theysay a bullet wound while thebody was being washed.Flip flopcontinued from government side.Now,Pakistan People's Partyco-chairman and husband of Benazir,AsifAli Zardari,hasnow said the assassination wasan act offollowers ofYazeed'sphilosophy.Yazeed was the manwhose army killed ImamHussain.He has tagged the pro-Mush Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid-e-Azam as the 'QatilLeague' and is pressing for hold-ing polls on time.He has alsodemanded a UN investigationinto the murder.Meanwhile,twelve members of the US Congress have rejectedthe White House contention thatBenazir's murder is an internalmatter for Pakistan and haveinstead urged an internationalinvestigation as in the case of Lebanese leader Rafik Hariri.In a letter to Secretary ofStateCondoleezza Rice,they have alsoasked for withholding of$50 mil-lion aid to Pakistan as decided byCongress.The letter is signed by House of Representative members SteveIsrael,Joseph Crowley,RonKlein,Carolyn Maloney,JamesMcGovern,Donald Payne,AdamSchiff,Allyson Schwartz,BradSherman,Loretta Sanchez,RonKind,and Adam Smith.Keymembers ofthe US HouseAppropriations Subcommitteeon State and Foreign Operationshave threatened Pakistan withmore aid cuts ifelections are notheld on time.Dispassionate analysis willalso tell us how Benazir carriedout her politics for years fromLondon and Dubai,a study in a

Continued on page 7

Zafarzang Singh

RICHMOND:

The new year beganon a rather sad note with the blindkillings oftwo Sikh brothers -Ravinder Singh and ParamjitSingh Kalsi - leaving the Sikh com-munity in a state ofshock.The thepolice are still groping in the darkabout the motive ofthe murders.Theirs was the forty-sixth murderin the course ofa year in a townwhich is reeling under homicidesofall shades.Through sheer dint ofhardwork and toil,the two brotherswere engaged in the sale ofhousesand running ofa restaurant cater-ing Indian food.Over the last few years,the EastBay area has seen a steep rise inhate crimes against Sikhs,rangingfrom murders to attacks onGurdwaras.Whether this one wasa hate crime ofthe kind which theUS has witnessed or ifit is a con-tract killing is a matter ofconjec-ture at the present moment.WhileSALDEF,Sikh Coalition and otherorganizations are engaged in undo-ing the stereotype image oftheSikhs,it comes as a surprise thatcrime continues to chase the Sikhsin one form or the other.The friend ofthe duo,GurmanBal has described them as "hard-working and spiritual." The localcouncilor ofRichmond City,whoknew the family,said they werekind,friendly,smiling and hard-working.Like most AmericanSikhs,he too cannot fathom thereason for this senseless murder.Itis disturbing that this city has arecord worse than the third worldas stated by a former president ofalocal Gurdwara.The family ofRavinder Singh inPatiala is worried about their sud-den end.Their American dream isover.They are now waiting for thebodies ofthe brothers hoping thatthey will come without the red tapemaking that an impossible task.Two customers ofthe IndiaSahib restaurant,Woujie andMichael from Pinole sum up thepersonality ofthe two brothers intheir online tribute on a website.They say,"Your gentleness and hos-pitality was unusual in a mean andhurried world.We are so saddenedby your untimely passing."Wendy writing a condolencesays that Pammi and Ravi so gra-cious and kind."I got to know themas a customer over their 5 yearswith the restaurant.When myfriend was dying from stomachcancer they let her come eat withme for free.They always had warmsmiles.We talked,joked,laughed.I'm so sorry they are gone,I'll miss

Continued on page 7

Daughter of East whobefriendedWest goesdown

Pak must reinvent polity. Old directions are dead, heapedup like fossils of an age gone by on the dung-heap history

FULL COVERAGEINSIDE

Richmond killingsshock community;motive unknown

The brothers at their restaurant

Memorial Serviceon Thursday

Friends of the killed duo areorganizing a memorial service atSunset View Cemetery (located atthe corner of Colusa and FairmountAvenue El Cerrito) onThursday, January 3, 2008 from 4:30pm - 5:30 pm. A Ravi and PammiKalsi Memorial Fund has also beenstarted at Wells Fargo Bank withAccount number 7294234344.

January 2-8, 2008

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worldsikhnews

January 2-8, 2008

WSN Network

AMRITSAR:

In a rather contro-versial decision,the SGPC execu-tive has decided to reinstate addi-tional secretary Daljit Singh Bediand re-employ controversial secre-tary Harbeant Singh,thus invitingmuch flak from not just manymembers but also circles outsidethe largest Sikh shrine manage-ment panel.The SGPC executivemet at Anandpur Sahib onTuesday and reinstated Bedi whowas suspended on charges of moral turpitude,and re-employedHarbeant Singh following theexpiry ofhis one-year extensionafter retirement.SGPC opposition members likeGurwinder Singh Shampura andKarnail Singh Panjauli not onlyopposed the decisions but went sofar as to ask that Avtar SinghMakkar be summoned to the AkalTakht for taking "such wrong deci-sions".Bedi was placed under sus-pension on the eve ofthe SGPC'sannual office-bearers election inNovember-end after he wascharged with moral turpitude.Afive member panel was constitutedto probe the charge.Makkar was accused ofgoingthe extra mile to get him a cleanchit from the panel members andhis case was not taken up for dis-cussion during the previous execu-tive meeting.Harbeant was dismissed fromservice during Gurcharan SinghTohra's tenure as SGPC presidentfor getting the job ofa clerk in thecommittee on the basis ofa boguscertificate.He was re-employed andentrusted with prominent portfo-lios after being given a year's exten-sion following his retirement lastyear.Now,he has been re-employedon a salary ofRs 25,000 a month.Talking to mediapersons afterthe meeting Makkar said Bedi wasfound to be innocent following theinquiry by the five-member com-mittee.He said the charges againsthim could not be proved.TheSGPC chiefalso said thatHarbeant's term as secretary hadbeen extended for another year "inview ofhis good administrativerecord".SGPC member Manjit SinghCalcutta objected to the executive'sdecisions,saying Bedi andHarbeant had tarnished the Sikhbody's image."Makkar shouldexplain his compulsions to favourtainted persons like Bedi andHarbeant," Calcutta said.

WSN Network

BURNABY:

The Sikhs ofBurnabygot into Christmas spirit in a bigway last Sunday.A Christmas cele-bration at the Shri Guru RavidassSabha temple,7271 Gilley Ave,fea-tured an 18-meter-long Christmascard made by students at the tem-ple's Sunday school.Instead ofturkey and eggnog,200 revellers dined on pakoras andtea.It's all part ofthe temple'spush to teach members about othercultures,said board member JaiBirdi."Ifwe believe in including every-one,there's no reason to be exclud-ing Christmas," Birdi said in aninterview.While some have arguedChristmas greetings offend newCanadians,the temple has chosento educate members about the holi-day,Birdi said.The board recently started refer-ring to the temple as a communitycentre,a way to make South Asianimmigrants who are Christian,Buddhist and Hindu feel more wel-come,Birdi said.Many Sikhs revere the teachingsofChrist,whose birth Christianscelebrate at Christmas,Birdi said,adding the two faiths have com-mon ground.For one thing,Sikhism preaches that all peopleare equal,a reaction againstIndia's rigid caste system."Christ taught equality.Thatmessage is very important,because in India,ifpeople are ofalower caste,they're mistreated," headded.About 60 children worked on thecard,which was presented toMayor Derek Corrigan at the party.While some were as young asthree,seniors at the temple alsochimed in.Pastor Randolph Bruce ofAllSaints Anglican Church also madean appearance.The party was sucha huge hit with local kids,the tem-ple will consider doing it againnext year.Burnaby-Edmonds MLA RajChouhan said the party showslocal Sikhs' acceptance of Canadian traditions."It's a tradition that we want tocelebrate with all the other tradi-tions," said Chouhan,the NDP'smulticulturalism critic."Ifwe're so proud ofCanada as amulticultural country,we shouldmake sure all cultures are celebrat-ed," he said.

WSN Network

AMRITSAR/LAHORE:

The busand train service betweenPakistan and India resumed onMonday and the SamjhautaExpress departed as per schedule.According to Indian HighCommission,the bus servicebetween India and Pakistan onDelhi-Lahore,Amritsar-NankanaSahib and Amritsar-Lahore sec-tors are being resumed.“Bus service between Srinagarand Muzaffarabad and Poonch-Rawalakot would also run as perexisting schedule,”the HighCommission said in a pressrelease issued in Islamabad onMonday.The Thar Express,runningbetween Munabao-Khokrapar,however,remained suspended onthe advice ofPakistan Railways,said the Indian High Commission.The Indian High Commissionhas issued instructions for exten-sion ofvisas ofPakistan nation-als who were to travel on theMunabao-Khokrapar service,by aweek,ifso required.Pakistan nationals who intend-ed to travel on this service andneed to travel back to Pakistanurgently may approach the con-cerned offices at Mumbai,Delhi,Amritsar,Jodhpur andAhmedabad for obtainingchanges in visas to travel to Delhifor return by any ofthe scheduledbus/train services to Lahore,saidthe Indian High Commission.The Indian embassy said alter-natively,the interested passen-gers may also approach therespective offices for making nec-essary endorsements on theirvisas to enable them to cross overto Pakistan at the Attari borderon-foot.

WSN Network

Prime Minister Manmohan Singhhas agreed in principle to connectMumbai and Amritsar through afreight corridor that will allowincreased domestic and interna-tional freight activities.The decision to this effect wasconveyed to the Punjab Chief Minister Prakash Singh Badalwhen he met Manmohan Singhlast Wednesday in Delhi.Mediaadvisor to the Punjab Chief Minister Harcharan Bains indi-cated that the state expects a for-mal clearance in January.Headded that the chiefministerwas impressed by the prime min-ister's initiatives to strengthenthe national trade artery giventhe increased prospects ofinter-national trade through theAttari border.The PM had also given an assur-ance that the Centre would consid-er Punjab's request for setting upofIndian Institute ofTechnology(IIT),Indian Institute of Management (IIM) and IndianInstitute ofInformationTechnology (IIIT) in the state.

WSN Network

AMRITSAR:

A mega conferenceofPersian teachers organised hereconcluded this week.A plethora of noted scholars in the Persian lan-guage from India as well as over-seas who had gathered to partici-pate in what was officially termedas the 28th InternationalConference ofPersian Teacherswere ofthe view that Persianshould be made a compulsory partofthe syllabi in all the universitiesand other educational institutionsofthe country.They also resolvedthat a Council for the promotion of Persian should be constituted bythe government.It was also resolved on the occa-sion that all the vacant posts of Persian teachers at different edu-cational institutions should befilled immediately.Also,shortterm courses should be intro-duced in Persian for advocates,itwas resolved.That is consideredparticularly important in thelight ofthe fact that much ofthelegal parlance used in the coun-try,particularly in Punjabi,isdrawn from Persian.The valedictory function for theconference was held at the GuruNanak Dev University.EminentSikh scholar Professor PrithipalSingh Kapoor and more than 150Persian scholars from India,Iranand Afghanistan presented theirviews at the conference.More than25 research papers were also pre-sented by noted scholars on therelationship ofPersian withSikhism and also on the impor-tance and relevance ofthe Persianlanguage in general.Professor Prithipal SinghKapoor,former Pro Vice-ChancellorofGuru Nanak DevUniversity,highlighted the impor-tance and relevance ofPersian lan-guage and its situation in Punjab.He said Persian had a great cultur-al heritage.Talking about the rela-tionship ofthe Persian languageand Sikhism,Professor Kapoorsaid the interaction oflanguagestarted with Guru Nanak.Giving briefhistorical factsabout Bhai Nand Lal,BalkarSingh said he was one ofthe 52poets in the court ofGuruGobind Singh.Son ofDiwanChajju Ram,mir munshi or chief secretary ofthe Governor of Ghazni,Bhai Lal in a short timeacquired great efficiency inPersian and Arabic languages.After the death ofhis parents,hedecided to return to Multan wherehe married a Sikh girl,who used torecite Gurbani and knewGurmukhi.Leaving his familybehind,he left for Anandpur Sahiband received Guru Gobind Singh’sblessings.After staying at there forsome time,he left to serve as mirmunshi under prince Mauzzam(later to become Emperor BahadurShah),due to an acquaintance of his father,named WasifKhan.Aurangzeb wished to converthim to Islam because he had sobeautifully interpreted the versesofthe Koran.Fearing persecution,Bhai Lal and his family left for thenorthern India.Leaving his familyin Multan,he once again came tostay with Guru Gobind Singh atAnandpur Sahib in 1697.Later,hereturned to Multan where heopened a school ofhigher educa-tion in Persian and Arabic.Professor Singh said Bhai Lal’sseven works in Persian poetryincluded Diwan-e-Goya,ZindgiNama,Ganj Nama,Joti Bigaas,Arzul Alfaaz,Tausif-o-Sana andKhatima,and Dastural-Insha,besides three in Punjabi.Earlier,the conference had beeninaugurated by veteran journalistand former Rajya Sabha MPKuldip Nayyar.Jathedar JoginderSingh Vedanti highlighted theimportance ofPersian in the vers-es ofGuru Gobind Singh in theZafarnama and the writings of Bhai Nand Lal and expressed thewish that the Persian scholarswould help in the analysis of Gurbani and the Sikh religion.

WSN Network

NEW DELHI:

SkyLink Travel,which is part ofthe SkyLinkGroup owned by Indo-Canadianentrepreneur Surjit Babra,claims to have developed theworld's fastest travel searchengine,most ofthe work onwhich was done at Noida nearNew Delhi.Named Skylink GlobalBooking Engine,it is also NorthAmerica's largest provider of airfare to travel agencies,chainsand consortiums.Surjit Babra,chairman andCEO ofSkyLink Group of Companies,said with pride,“Onour search engine,we offer 35million fares in an instant.Whenyou type out your two travelcities-say from Little Rock toAmsterdam-in an instant thissearch engine sorts out whetherflights are available betweenthese destinations,which air-lines operate and what the faresare.''He said the Global BookingSearch Engine was part ofthegroup's foray into the travel andhospitality industry.“Right nowthis search engine is available totravel agents who pay us tobecome members.Fourteen peo-ple load the data on it everyday,making us the leader in thisarea.''Babra said their Noida-basedoffice was handling much ofthework related to the searchengine,travel portals and sites,e-fliers and customer calls.“We have 28 people workingthere right now,but we need 50.However,the staffattrition rateis a major problem there.Everybody is stealing fromeverybody else.Just like AirCanada has shifted its operationsto Pune,we are also looking atsmaller cities such asChandigarh.''In the long run,he said,hisgroup will have 500 to 600 peoplein India.

SGPC secretary accusedof turpitude reinstated

Christmas witha Sikh spiritin Burnaby

Bus service betweenPakistan andIndia resumes

Indo-Canadiancompanydevelopsfasted travelsearch engine

Indian govt gives nod for extensionof freight corridor to Amritsar

Scholars resolve to revive Persian in India

NEWS

worldsikhnews

January 2-8, 2008

WSN Network

CHANDIGAH:

FINANCE ANDAccounts outsourcing has nowreached the Tier II and Tier IIIcities ofPunjab.One such town isMandi Gobindgarh.In its bazaar,you find young Punjabi boys work-ing online for the North Americanclients oftheir company,SunilKhullar InfoTech ManagementServices (P) Ltd.And yes,theyderive total satisfaction from the job.It all started three years ago,when Sunil Khullar,a CharteredAccountant,decided to enter out-sourcing.He got in touch withHarmeet Singh Dhillon,a localsoftware specialist and HarjinderSingh Jonjua,an overseas market-ing specialist based in Mohali.Today,after three years ofhardwork and dedication,the resultscan be seen.Already the companyis working for five States in USA;ithas been adding newer States to thelist.It is planning to enter theCanadian,British,Australian andNZ markets too.Says Gurpreet Singh ofthe com-pany,"I have grown up with thecompany from the Executive levelto the Manager level.I am totally athome with the overseas clients aswe work online with their staff daily.I am from Mandi Gobindgarhand never thought would workwith Americans without leavingmy town." Adds Sunil Khullar,"Iam proud to lead my staff,all localPunjabi boys,tasting success in theglobal market".

WSN Network

FLUSHING,QUEENS:

Three menwere viciously attacked in sepa-rate robberies within two hours of each other in Flushing,onChristmas eve,which left AmarjitSingh,a 45 year-old Sikh taxi driv-er,with head injuries that werelater operated at the New YorkHospital Queens.“The first attack,by at least twomen,was on a Caucasian man at4.10 am followed by an attack on anAsian man at 5.30am and onAmarjit Singh at 5.40am,near theSikh Gurdwara in Parson Blvd,”said Detective Vaughn ofNYPD,who is investigating a connectionbetween the attacks.The attacksleft the Caucasian man with headinjuries and the Asian man withinjuries to his ribs.Amarjit Singh,45 years,afterundergoing head surgery at NewYork Hospital Queens.“A man is in custody after one of the victims picked him out from apreliminary identification and aline-up identification will takeplace on 7th January,”he added.Investigations are ongoing about amobile phone which was droppedby one ofthe robbers during theattack on one ofthe victims.Amarjit Singh’s wife,JasbirKaur,said her husband sustained afractured skull and a piece gotpushed down which was detectedthrough a cat-scan.According to Detective Vaughn,police are investigating the threeattacks in the area involving bluntweapons.A black car was alsopresent at each ofthe crimescenes.The United Sikhs,a non profitcommunity organization,calledupon all Gurdwaras in the Queensarea to install security cameras tomeet concerns about these crimes.This Christmas eve attacks fol-lows a robbery last month on 59 yrold Gurjit Singh,who was attackedat his doorstep on 91st Avenue inRichmond Hill,Queens,which wasalso near a Gurdwara.NY Committee Head on PublicSafety,Council Member,Peter F.Vallone Jr.,was contacted byUnited Sikhs to draw his attentionto the concerns ofthe local resi-dents.

WSN Network

SAN FRANSISCO:

Two Indian-Americanbrothers were mauled by a tiger at the SanFrancisco Zoo in an attack on Christmas daywhich killed another man.Brothers Amritpal 'Paul' Dhaliwal,19,andKulbir Dhaliwal,23,were being treated forsevere bite and claw wounds at the SanFrancisco General Hospital.Carl Sousa,Jr,17,the third victim oftheattack,died.The culprit in Tuesday's freak incident,a350-pound Siberian tiger named Tatiana,had to be shot to death by the police.Tatiana had evidently escaped its enclo-sure by leaping or climbing the walls,which,a zoo expert now says,were scaleable.Tatiana was in the news around this timelast year too,when it had attacked the zookeeper during public feeding.The police said Kulbir was the rampaginganimal's first victim.As the tiger clawed andbit him,his younger brother and Sousayelled to scare it offhim.The big cat thenwent for Sousa,slashing his neck as thebrothers ran to a zoo cafe for help.After killing Sousa,the tiger followed thetrail ofblood left by Kulbir about 300 yardsto the cafe,where it mauled both him andAmritpal.The three boys had gone to the zoo togeth-er,which has remained shuttered since theincident.The two boys are due to be dischargedfrom the hospital over the weekend.Newspaper reports say the Dhaliwalbrothers have been hostile to police inter-viewers,at first refusing to identify them-selves or give an account ofthe incident.The reason for their reticence may havebeen that they were charged in Septemberwith misdemeanour,public intoxication andresisting a police officer after they werearrested a short distance from their home,according to court documents.

Sikh man has head surgeryafter NY attack on X’mas eve

US States outsource F&A Activities to Punjab

Here's to the outgoing year, 2007

May the good times live on in our memories,and may we learn lessons from the troubling timesthat will make us stronger and better than ever.Here's to 2008For each and every one of you,may it be filled with significant stepstoward the fulfillment of your fondest wishes.In this coming new year,let us focus on our goals and work toward our dreams,and yet (smile)let's all try to go with the flow a little moreand stress a little less.And most important,here's to all of you.Appreciate yourselves and each other in the New Yearas I appreciate all of you now.Let's focus on each other's good pointsand choose to overlook minor annoyancesto create mutual happiness and contentment in 2008.Enjoy the journey!!Parminde

r Singh S

andhu

Tiger mauls brothers,kills another

Indian caste murder in Chicago

WSN Network

MARKHAM (ILLINOIS):

A man faces murder charges for the deaths of his pregnant daughter and her family,a crime authorities allege stemmedfrom his anger over his son-in-law's failure to secure his permission forthe marriage.Subhash Chander,57,was being held without bond onthree counts offirst-degree murder and one count ofintentional homi-cide ofan unborn child in connection with the fatal fire on Saturday inthe Chicago suburb ofOak Forest.Chander told the police he disliked Rajesh Kumar,his 36-year-old son-in-law,because he belonged to a lower Indian social caste,said Mr RobertMilan,Cook County's first assistant state's attorney.He allegedly set thefire that killed Kumar,Monika Rani,22,and their three-year-old son,Vansh,the authorities said.Rani was five months pregnant.Chander wasrepresented by a public defender at a bond hearing on Tuesday,but thepublic defender's name was not immediately available.

5,000 Pakistanis attendQadian meet despite unrest

WSN Network

QADIAN:

The political unrest in Pakistanfollowing the assassination offormer PrimeMinister Benazir Bhutto notwithstanding,as many as 5,000 Pakistanis made it to theannual Ahmadiyya congregation at Qadianin Punjab."The most important thing about thisyear's convention is that a huge number of devotees have come from Pakistan," saidAhmadiyya Jamaat officials.Manuver Ahmad Khadim,the communi-ty's spokesperson,said the special slogan'Love for all,hatred for none' was beingspread in the entire world."This slogan is very special for the annualconvention and is adding splendour to theevent," he added.The main objective oftheconvention,speakers said,was to project thepristine teachings ofIslam.Started in 1891 by the founder oftheAhmadiyya Muslim Community HadhratMirza Ghulam Ahmad,the Jalsa (annualconvention) is held in this Punjab townevery year.