The insane passion to research the remains of the abandoned Sikh legacy across Pakistan has taken me across the length and breadth of the country. Rationality cannot explain this quest which I have taken upon myself to document because the subject has not been dealt holistically since the community’s umbilical...
On 15 August 1947, Nehru proclaims in Delhi, “A new star rises, the star of freedom in the east, a new hope comes into being, a vision long cherished materializes.” On 14 August 1947 Jinnah declares in Karachi, “…..after he conquered them. He showed to them utmost tolerance and regard...
Every nook and corner of the Baba Sahib Singh Bedi Gurdwara at Gujranwala in Pakistan is occupied by migrants from India who moved here during the partition of 1947. Cautiously, I asked to be permitted inside the private room of a couple. This room, which is now their bedroom was...
Meharban Singh, a famous personality of Singapore, during his visit to Pakistan in the 1970s had called on General Ayub Khan, the second President of Pakistan who had studied at Khalsa High School in Haripur (Pakistan) before the partition of India. At dinner in his home in Islamabad, Meharban Singh...
At Sahiwal (Mandi Montgomery) in Pakistan, I was led by two boys to view the remains of an abandoned Sikh site. With much hesitation, I followed them inside a police station only to realize that this is the premises of an erstwhile gurdwara! Introducing ourselves to the police officer, we...
Just before the advent of British, Delhi having been ruled for centuries by Central Asian dynasties was a culturally rich Islamic city, while Lahore having become the capital of the Sikh Empire, had gathered a unique Punjabi footprint. Having seeded divide, as the British departed the Indian subcontinent in 1947,...
It was at Mangat village in Pakistan that the Guru Granth Sahib, the scripture of the Sikh faith was first replicated from its original. In its pages, the verses of Sufis, Hindu Saints and the Sikh Gurus symbolize the interfaith universality of humanity! Mangat, once a predominantly Sikh village, after...
At Okara district in Pakistan, I visited the remains of an institution that was established in the early 18th century by the Udasis, who were the followers of Guru Nanak but their syncretic inter-religious belief systems spanned across Sikhism, Hinduism and Sufism. As I peered into the desolated congregation hall...
Jamrud Fort (Pakistan) is under the control of Pakistan military and out of bounds for public. During my trip in October 2014, I remained unsatiated as I could not enter the fort which was built by the famous Sikh general, Hari Singh Nalwa. In silence, I had returned, wondering how...
From the northern reaches of Indus to the Khyber Pass in Pakistan, I have traced the existence of 27 forts that the Sikh Army had built in the early 19th century. Hari Singh Nalwa, the western commander of the Sikh Army had engaged in tough battles against Paindah Khan, the...
