[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 66 (Wednesday, May 12, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E828-E829]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  ELECTIONS IN PUNJAB MAY 10--THIS IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO CLAIM FREEDOM

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. EDOLPHUS TOWNS

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, May 12, 2004

  Mr. TOWNS. Mr. Speaker, India is undergoing a cycle of elections. 
Unlike this country, India does not hold the elections on a single day 
but over a period of time. I guess it's difficult to hold elections on 
one day when you have a billion people.
  Elections in Punjab have been scheduled for May 10. Recently, the 
Council of Khalistan put out an open letter to the people of Punjab 
urging them to use these elections to bring about independence for the 
Sikh homeland, Punjab, Khalistan.
  It looks like the elections will result in a hung Parliament. The 
militantly Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which has

[[Page E829]]

been leading the government, seems to have lost some ground. A 
coalition government will need to be formed.
  That brings substantial power to the regional parties in the various 
states and regions of the country. These parties could well control who 
runs the Indian government. The Council of Khalistan called on these 
regional parties to band together in a ``freedom bloc'' to unite for 
freedom and self-determination for all of the minorities of South Asia.
  The open letter notes that both the BJP and the rival Congress Party 
are dangerous to the freedom of the Sikhs and other minorities, and the 
regional Akali Dal is in coalition with the BJP. The Akali leaders 
invited the Congress Party government of Indira Gandhi to invade the 
Golden Temple, the seat of the Sikh religion, and they surrendered 
quickly when the attack came.
  This letter points out these and other reasons why it is important to 
use these elections as a springboard to achieve freedom for Khalistan 
and the other nations seeking to free themselves of Indian rule.
  Mr. Speaker, we all know the brutality of India's suppression of 
these freedom movements. They have murdered over 250,000 Sikhs since 
1984, over 85,000 Kashmiri Muslims, over 300,000 Christians in 
Nagaland, and tens of thousands of other minorities. Now, according to 
the Tribune of Chandigarh, the Indian government is demanding that the 
government of Punjab pay them back for the costs accrued in suppressing 
the Sikhs.
  This is outrageous, Mr. Speaker. As the beacon of freedom, the United 
States must be strong against this kind of repression. We should stop 
all American aid to India until it stops the repression and allows all 
people within its borders to enjoy their most basic human rights fully. 
And we should put this Congress on record as supporting self-
determination for the Sikhs of Khalistan, the Muslims of Kashmir, the 
Christians of Nagaland, and all the other people seeking freedom from 
India's brutal rule.
  The right to self-determination is the essence of democracy, Mr. 
Speaker. The lack of self-determination and the repression show that 
India's claim to be a democracy is fake. It is time for us to take a 
stand on behalf of freedom for all.
  Mr. Speaker, I would like to insert the Council of Khalistan's open 
letter into the Record at this time.

                               Open Letter to the Sikh Nation,

                                                   April 27, 2004.
       Elections in Punjab have been set for May 10. Elections 
     under the Indian Constitution will not free the Sikh Nation. 
     Use this opportunity, however, to elect committed, hottest 
     Sikhs who are committed to freeing Khalistan to Parliament.
       These elections will certainly result in a hung Parliament. 
     No party is capable of putting together the national majority 
     needed to control Parliament on its own. A coalition 
     government will be formed. The regional parties will be very 
     important in deciding who will control the government. This 
     gives the regional parties and the regions they represent 
     enormous power. We must use this power to our benefit. It is 
     time for the regional parties to form a ``freedom bloc'' to 
     work together for freedom for Khalistan, Kashmir, Nagaland, 
     and all the minority nations seeking their freedom from 
     India's brutal rule. We agree with L.K. Advani when he said, 
     ``When Kashmir goes, India goes.'' By securing freedom for 
     any of the captive nations of South Asia, we bring about 
     freedom for all of us. Working together in a common, unified 
     effort will hasten that day for everyone.
       Congress and the BJP are both the enemies of the Sikh 
     Nation. They both watch out for the interests of the Hindu 
     majority at the expense of the Sikh Nation and other 
     minorities. The BJP has murdered Muslims in Gujarat, in 
     Kashmir, and elsewhere and Christians in Nagaland and 
     throughout India. They have forcibly reconverted Christians 
     back to Hinduism. They preach Hindutva (total Hindu control 
     of the culture and society) and openly preach that if you 
     live in India, you must either be Hindu or be subservient to 
     Hinduism.
       The Congress Party attacked the Golden Temple, the most 
     sacred shrine of the Sikh Nation, 125 other Gurdwaras 
     throughout Punjab. Over 20,000 Sikhs were murdered in those 
     attacks, known as Operation Bluestar, including Sant Jamail 
     Singh Bhindranwale, General Shabeg Singh, Bhai Amrik Singh, 
     and over 100 Sikh religious students ages 8-13 who were taken 
     out into the courtyard and shot. The BJP congratulated Indira 
     Gandhi on the attack and said it should have been done 
     earlier.
       These attacks accelerated the Sikh independence movement 
     and deepened the desire for independence in the hearts of 
     Sikhs, a fire that burns brightly in the hearts of the Sikh 
     Nation to this day. Sant Bhindranwale said that the attack on 
     the Golden Temple would ``lay the foundation stone of 
     Khalistan'' and he was right. Late in 2003, former Member of 
     Parliament Atinder Pal Singh organized a seminar on Khalistan 
     at Baba Makhan Shah Labana Hall, Sector 30, Chandigarh. This 
     shows that the flame of freedom is still burning in the 
     hearts of Sikhs. Sikhs can never forgive or forget the Indian 
     government's military attack on the Golden Temple. It is time 
     to take action to free our homeland.
       The Badal Akalis are totally controlled by their coalition 
     partners, the BJP. Chief Minister Captain Anarinder Singh is 
     in bed with the Congress Party. He honored the former Chief 
     Minister, Beant Singh, who is responsible for the mass murder 
     of hundreds of thousands of Sildis and gave over 41,000 cash 
     bounties to police officials for Killing Sikhs. Neither will 
     protect the interests of the Sikh Nation. They have 
     undermined Sikh character and Sikh values. Simply by joining 
     the Congress Party, Captain Amarinder Singh is undermining 
     Sikh values. Badal, Tobra, and Longowal said that India would 
     have to get to the Golden Temple by rolling tanks over their 
     dead bodies, then quickly surrendered. The Alkalis invited 
     the Indian Army to the Golden Temple to murder Sant 
     Bhindranwale, General Shabeg Singh, Bhai Amrik Singh, and so 
     many other committed Sikhs.
       Do not support Badal or the Alkalis. The Badal government 
     was the most corrupt government in the history of Punjab. 
     They sold jobs for a fixed fee. They came up with a new, 
     dignified term for bribery: ``fee for service.'' If you 
     didn't pay the fee, you didn't get the service. Badal's wife 
     was so experienced that she could pick up a bag of money and 
     tell how much money was in it. Parkash Singh Badal was a 
     disaster for Puniab and a disgrace to the Sikh Nation. Yet 
     the Akali Dal continues to support Badal, even though he was 
     prosecuted and jailed for his corruption. What has happened 
     to the character of the present-day Alkalis? They are 
     defaming the name of the pre-partition pious Akalis who 
     suffered and sacrificed for the cause of the Khalsa Panth.
       Not even a singe Akali protested the unprecedented 
     corruption of Badal. According to India-West, the Punjab 
     Vigilance Bureau carried out raids on Badal's properties for 
     several months and filed a charge-sheet in a local court 
     charging Mr. Badal with siphoning off Rs. 784 million, the 
     equivalent of $17 million in U.S. money, during his five 
     years as chief minister. The article says that Mr. Badal and 
     his family hold assets of Rs. 4326 crores (nearly $1 
     billion), most of which are located outside India. Half the 
     population of India lives below the international poverty 
     line. About 40 percent live on less than $2 per day.
       Lalit Mansingh, the outgoing Indian Ambassador to the 
     United States, has said, ``There is no India without Sikhs 
     and no Sikhs without India.'' He is wrong. The Sikh Nation 
     has survived perfectly fine without India. Before there was 
     an India, Sikhs flourished. The Sikhs ruled Punjab as an 
     independent country from 1710 to 1716 and again from 1765 to 
     1849. Sikhs stopped the invasion from the West, annexed 
     Kashmir from the Afghans, and occupied Kabul for a short 
     period.
       Remember the words of Professor Darshan Singh, former 
     Jathedar of the Akal Takht, during the celebration of Guru 
     Nanak's birthday: ``If a Sikh is not a Khalistani, he is not 
     a Sikh.'' He was only reiterating the Guru's blessing, ``In 
     Grieb Sikhin Ko Deon Patshahi.'' The time to achieve our 
     independence is now.
       The opportunity these elections provide must be used to 
     liberate our homeland, Khalistan, from Indian oppression. We 
     must choose leaders who will work for freedom for the Sikh 
     Nation. Remember, you get what you vote for. Always remember 
     our heritage: Raj Kare Ga Khalsa; Khalsa Bagi Yan Badshah. 
     Freedom for Khalistan is very close. Let us take this 
     opportunity to make it happen.
           Panth Da Sewadar,
                                          Dr. Gurmit Singh Aulakh,
     President, Council of Khalistan.

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