Captain Amarjit Singh Jaijee (retd), grandson of freedom fighter and Praja Mandal Movement leader Sewa Singh Thikriwala, shows a picture of the Saragarhi gurdwara. Tribune photo: Rajesh Sachar

Gagan K Teja

Tribune News Service

Patiala, March 9

The state government’s decision to hand over the Saragarhi gurdwara at Ferozepur — the war memorial built to honour the 21 Sikh soldiers of the British Indian Army who sacrificed their lives on duty — to a religious sect trust has led to resentment among veterans of the Sikh regiment.The government during its cabinet meeting on December 3, 2016, had decided to hand over this memorial to Baba Nand Singh Trust of Nanaksar Sampardai for 30 years. This has not gone down well with the Saragarhi Memorial and Ethos Promotion Forum.The gurdwara was to be handed over to the sect on January 6, but as the code of conduct was enforced, forum secretary Capt Amarjit Singh Jaijee (retd) wrote a letter to the Election Commission and got the move stalled.Now, the forum has approached Punjab Governor VP Badnore to revoke this order urging him to “maintain the sanctity of this great memorial, which should not be converted into a serai”.Saying the sanctity of the war memorial was under threat, Capt Jaijee said, “There are hundreds of gurdwaras in the state being headed by various religious preachers and we have complete regard for all of them, but the Saragarhi gurdwara is not a religious structure. It is a war memorial constructed in the memory of those Sikh bravehearts who did not think twice before laying down their lives in the line of duty. This is disrespect to the martyrs and the SAD-BJP government had taken this decision for personal gains which is unacceptable.”During the Congress government in 2006, the Ferozepur memorial was handed over to the Saragarhi Memorial Management Trust with the local General Officer Commanding as its head and the Deputy Commissioner as its vice-chairman.However, the SAD-BJP government after coming to power scrapped the arrangement on August 1, 2008. The memorial has also been recognised by the Archaeological Survey of India as a protected monument.

Last stand

The Saragarhi gurdwara was one of the three memorials made by the British Government to commemorate the gallant action of the 21 Sikh soldiers of 36 Sikh Battalion (now 4th Battalion the Sikh regiment) who laid down their lives defending the Saragarhi post on September 12, 1897, in North-West Frontier Province (NWFP) (now in Pakistan). The other two are in Amritsar and the Battalion Headquarters at Ford Lockhart in NWFP. All 21 Sikh soldiers were awarded the Indian Order of Merit, which was at that time the highest award given to Indian soldiers. The Saragarhi battle has been recognised by UNESCO as one of the 10 most famous battles of the world history showing collective bravery, devotion to duty and calm defiance in the face of certain death.