117 HRES 908 IH: Recognizing February 4th as “Saka Nakodar Day”. U.S. House of Representatives 2022-02-04 text/xml EN Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.

IV117th CONGRESS2d SessionH. RES. 908IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVESFebruary 4, 2022Ms. Lofgren (for herself and Ms. Eshoo) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Oversight and ReformRESOLUTIONRecognizing February 4th as Saka Nakodar Day.

Whereas, on February 4, 1986, four unarmed and peaceful Sikh students, namely Ravinder Singh, Baldhir Singh, Jhilman Singh, and Harminder Singh were killed by State Police in Punjab (State) India’s Nakodar subdivision, in an unprovoked firing while participating in protest against the desecration of Sikh scripture Sri Guru Granth Sahib considered by all Sikhs to be the final, supreme, and living Guru after the lineage of 10 Sikh Gurus;Whereas the State authorities violated the freedom of peaceful assembly which is endorsed by Article 20 of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 21 of the United Nations International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and Article 5 of the United Nations Declaration on Human Rights Defenders;Whereas the dead bodies were secretly disposed of to conceal this extrajudicial killing;Whereas the State government constituted a commission of judicial inquiry headed by a renowned jurist on this incident;Whereas the Justice Gurnam Singh commission of inquiry submitted its report to the State government on October 31, 1986, but the government failed to place and discuss the report, along with the mandatory Action Taken Report, in the State assembly within six months of submission;Whereas the State obscured the relevant parts of the judicial commission inquiry report and took no action, not a single perpetrator has been brought to justice to date;Whereas the victims’ families have been fighting for truth, justice, accountability, and closure for over 36 years;Whereas this incident has now also received international attention as Dr. Iqtidar Cheema, Member of United Nations Global steering committee of Office of the Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide, has raised it on various international forums;Whereas the United States is an advocate for the democratic and human rights of all people and stands in solidarity with the families of the victims of the Nakodar incident and Sikh Nation in their pursuit of truth and justice as they continue to build worldwide support; andWhereas the incident has come to be known as Saka Nakodar for the Punjabi word for massacre, “Saka”, and the region in Punjab, Nakodar, where it took place: Now, therefore, be it

That the House of Representatives recognizes a Saka Nakodar Day.