[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 41 (Wednesday, April 9, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E615]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    THE BIRTHDAY OF THE SIKH NATION: A TIME TO SPEAK OUT FOR FREEDOM

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                        HON. WILLIAM O. LIPINSKI

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, April 9, 1997

  Mr. LIPINSKI. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to take this opportunity to 
wish our Sikh friends a happy Vaisakhi Day. This day commemorates the 
anniversary of the founding of the Khalsa by Guru Gobind Singh in 1699. 
It is an extremely important day in the Sikh calendar.
  In 1999, only 2 years from now, the Sikh Nation will celebrate its 
300th anniversary. This will be a major celebration for the Sikh Nation 
and its friends. However, it will be diminished if the Sikhs continue 
to live under the kind of brutal tyranny and repression where human 
rights violations are committed by the occupying Indian forces.
  A recent example on March 15, 1997, involved the abduction and murder 
of Kashmir Singh, an official of the Akali Dal or Amritsar. Kashmir 
Singh was picked up by the police in the middle of the night by the 
police and murdered. His lifeless body was then dumped at the district 
hospital. On September 6, 1995, the police kidnapped human rights 
activist Jaswant Singh Khalra, who had published a report exposing 
their policy of mass cremations. Last year it was reported that the 
police picked up and murdered a 3-year-old Sikh boy, his father, and 
his uncle, who were all suspected terrorists. Quite frankly, it is 
difficult for me to believe that a 3-year-old boy could be a terrorist. 
The regime has also detained and harassed Ram Narayan Kumar, a Hindu 
human rights activist who produced the video, ``Disappearances in 
Punjab,'' which was provided to me last year by the Council of 
Khalistan. The list goes on and on.
  All told, it is estimated that over a quarter of a million Sikhs have 
been persecuted for speaking out for what they believe in. In America, 
we call it free speech. In India, they clearly do not.
  These are just a few examples of human rights violations committed by 
India. We must continue to press India to respect basic human rights. 
If India does not comply, then the United States should stop sending 
them millions of dollars in foreign aid. It is time to take action to 
end this injustice. Then we can join our Khalistani friends in 
celebrating their 300th anniversary.
  I hope my colleagues will take a few minutes to review the following 
article on the murder of Kashmir Singh.

                [From the Indian Express, Mar. 17, 1997]

                        A Cold-Blooded Killing?

                            (By Atul Sangar)

       Hoshiarpur, March 16.--Widespread resentment prevails 
     amongst the residents of Pandori Rukmana village, located 
     about 10 km from Hoshiarpur on the Hoshiarpiur-Jalandhar 
     road, and several other villages, over the killing of 26-
     year-old Kashmira Singh, allegedly by a Tarn Taran police 
     party on Friday night.
       The body was cremated today after a post-mortem examination 
     which showed wounds on the neck and knee caps.
       Such was the anger of the people that the day the incident 
     took place, villagers from the area collected in large 
     numbers at Prabhat Chowk, in Hoshiarpur, demanding 
     registration of a case by the police. However, after about 
     six hours of dharna and blocking of traffic, it was only when 
     Punjab minister Sarup Singh got caught in the traffic jam and 
     was later gheraoed by the villagers, that the case was 
     registered, said Professor Gurpal Singh, uncle of Kashmira 
     Singh.
       A gloomy atmosphere prevailed in the village when this 
     reporter visited the family of Kashmira Singh. His father 
     Jeet Singh said tearfully, ``we were sleeping inside when 
     suddenly 10 to 12 persons, some in plain-clothes and others 
     in uniform, caught hold of me by the throat. On hearing my 
     shrieks, my son also came to my room. We were told by police 
     and others to keep quiet and were apprehensive that these 
     persons may be bad elements. They tried to grab and drag us 
     out of the house. Two or three rounds were fired during this 
     scuffle and we were bundled into a four-wheeler with a 
     blanket over our faces.''
       Jeet Singh, a farmer and junior employee of a semi-
     government undertaking, said that his son was farming and had 
     studied up to BSC-I. He said that after being ``kidnapped'' 
     they were made to travel for about 20 minutes and he was 
     pushed out of the vehicle near a sheller at Kanani-Wala 
     village where he asked for water from the sheller attendant. 
     Barefoot, he later started walking back and took a lift from 
     a taxi and reached the village.
       Meanwhile, at the village, the ladies, including Kashmira's 
     wife Harpreet Kaur, raised a hue and cry and the sarpanch, 
     lambardar and others gathered.
       According to the members of Kashmira's family, the duo were 
     taken away around 12.30 or 1 a.m. and Jeet Singh returned 
     around 3 or 4 p.m.
       Jeet Singh's house is partially constructed and wood work 
     is incomplete in several rooms. He left behind an eight-month 
     old child.
       Later, the villagers approached the police and rang them up 
     from the panchayat telephone but persons turned up from the 
     Nasrala Chowki only.
       Lambardar Ajeet Singh said that Kashmira was wrongly being 
     defamed as having terrorist links. Others told The Indian 
     Express that Kashmira was an activist and pracharak of Akali 
     Dal (Mann).
       Mann also visited the village today. Sympathising with the 
     villagers, he is reported to have said that the Badal 
     government was going the way of previous governments.
       A couple of empty cartridges were recovered from the 
     courtyard of the house today.
       On the other hand, the Hoshiarpur police and their 
     counterparts in Tarn Taran have contended that Kashmira had 
     terrorist links and was killed in an encounter with the 
     police.
       Shera, a resident of a neighbouring village, said, ``we 
     never expected this kind of treatment from the Badal 
     government and the police.
       But it seems nothing has changed.
       Many in the area expressed frustration over the state of 
     affairs.''
       The SSP of Hoshiarpur was not available for comments 
     despite several attempts to contact him.
       Chandigarii: Director General of Punjab Police P.C. Dogra 
     has defended the police action resulting in the death of 
     Kashmir Singh.
       The latter, he said, was not only wanted by the police but 
     had also made a murderous assault on the police party 
     carrying him.
       While one SPO and witnesses had been seriously injured by 
     him with a sword, the police, he claimed, had acted in self-
     defence.
     
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