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THIS refers to Mr S.S. Dhanoa’s letter (Feb 20) regarding the history of the Akali Dal. The use of the terms like “confused” and “self-centred” (“Manmukh”, as he call it) does not behove the dignity of a person of his stature.

Regarding the facts narrated by him, I have to state that Mr Dhanoa is right when he says that the Shiromani Akali Dal is a product of the gurdwara reform movement. It came into being as the “Akali Dal” to serve as a central volunteers force for the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee at a meeting held at Akal Takht on December 20, 1920. Sarmukh Singh Jhabal was named as its first President. The epithet “Shiromani” was added to the name on March 22, 1922. (Encyclopaedia of Sikhism, Vol. I, 44).

It is wrong to aver that the Akali Dal was founded by a few “politically motivated Sikhs”. It can hardly be imagined that the founders of the Akali Dal deserve the contempt with which they have been referred to by the writer.

The first political party that the enlightened Sikhs brought into being was the Central Sikh League, which was formed at Bradlaugh Hall, Lahore, on March 30,1919. The leading figures were those members of the Chief Khalsa Diwan who thought that “unalloyed loyalty” to the British Raj was neither in the interest of the Sikhs nor the country.

S. Gajjan Singh, a practising lawyer of Ludhiana, became the first President of the League, and Sardar Gurbux Singh Giani, a Barrister from Amritsar, was chosen as General Secretary. The others among the prominent Sikhs who founded this party were Prof (Sant) Teja Singh, Shivdeo Singh Oberoi and Prof Jodh Singh.

The party was formed when the air was thick with the cries of the grant of communal representation. The Lucknow Congress-League Pact had been signed. The Reforms Declaration of 1919 had come. The Sikhs organised themselves to claim their share in provincial and imperial councils.

The Akali Dal supplied Sikh volunteers to the Central Sikh League for its sessions. Akali leaders like Baba Kharak Singh and Master Tara Singh gradually came to figure on the centre stage. It was as late as 1930 that the Central Sikh League got merged into the Akali Dal when Master Tara Singh came to head both parties. (For details see “Politics of the Central Sikh League” by Sukhmani Bal).

This is only to put the record straight. That the Akali Dal vigorously participated in India’s freedom struggle, and its leadership strove hard to save the present Punjab and Haryana region from being enveloped by Pakistan, are facts that can hardly be contested.

Flats sans approach road

Consequent upon the allotment of land by HUDA to various cooperative societies in Sector 5, Mansa Devi Complex, Panchkula, hundreds of flats have been constructed. The members of the societies are salaried persons and from weaker sections. They have spent a major part of their hard-earned money in the construction of these flats. Now when these flats are complete and fit for occupation, most of the owners cannot dare to shift there in the absence of any workable approach road. A few owners have shifted and are facing an acute problem.

In some cases HUDA has even issued the completion certificate and allowed a rebate in the cost of land for timely completion of the project, but has failed to provide the necessary infrastructure like roads.

In these conditions, it is not at all possible even for a healthy person to have an access to the flats. The fate of old and infirm persons needs no emphasis. As such, lakhs of rupees spent by each flat-owner have gone waste.

Lest the people come to a point of total breakdown and initiate legal proceedings, HUDA is requested to realise its responsibility and act swiftly in this regard to enable the owners to settle in their own flats comfortably at the earliest.

R. N. GUPTA
Panchkula

With reference to Mr Hari Jaisingh’s “Building on euphoria: real test before two PMs” (February 19), the Pakistani cricket team’s visit to and its warm reception in India, followed by our Prime Minister’s bus ride to Lahore can be described as small but significant steps towards normalisation of Indo-Pak relations.

Given the long history of mutual mistrust and suspicion engendered not so much by the people as by the political leadership of both countries, it would require a hefty dose of irrational optimism to believe that all contentious issues can be made to vanish overnight. Unfortunately, international issues, even though bilateral in nature, do not lend themselves to such easy solutions. There is something known as what the author calls internal political compulsions, which have a direct bearing on the status of relationship between the two countries.

Against this backdrop, the Prime Minister of India and Pakistan deserve credit for attempting to remove the irritants to pave the way for fulfilling some hopes and removing some fears. It is too early to draw comfort that all is well. Whether these good intentions will ultimately lead to a genuine “Hindi Paki bhai bhai” era or not will depend on how the two countries conduct themselves when they actually tackle the nuts and bolts of the various problems and issues which have bedevilled their relations so far.

In my view, a step-by-step approach may prove to be the key to the situation. Since the two countries try to solve too many problems at the same time, they get stuck. The first and foremost thing they should do now is to sign a no-war pact which has become highly imperative in the wake of their newly acquired nuclear capability. The suspicion that one country is in possession of superior capability has so far acted as the spur to step up activity by the other. Mutual distrust and jealousy, fuelled periodically by sentiments of national chauvinism, have acted generally as a damper on efforts to improve relations. The proposed pact will make a psychological impact on the psyche of the people of both countries and usher in a new chapter of positive and constructive thinking. This would be followed by a decrease in the defence budget and an increase in trade between them.

The four-decade old posture of acrimony should not be allowed to continue indefinitely. A turn for the better has become imperative because any further confrontation has the potentialities for causing untold damage to both countries. All this means, in a nutshell, that the Kashmir issue should no longer continue to be a stumbling block in the way of a number of other vital issues of mutual interest.

NEW BEGINNING: Starting a bus service between New Delhi and Lahore will prove a new beginning in India-Pakistan relations.

Lahore and New Delhi have their own historical significance, but since 1947 the two cities have been involved in an endless game of proxy over issues of little importance. Although the Samjhauta Express was on the scene doing its bit, trains have their own limitations. With the commencement of the bus service, it is hoped that there will soon be the dawn of wisdom, and the sun of peace and joy may rise and bring happiness to the ordinary people of both countries.

This is indeed a remarkable achievement of the Vajpayee government. It is hoped that the Calcutta-Dhaka chapter, if opened, will also generate euphoria among the people.

FOR BETTER TRADE TIES: Mr Nawaz Sharif’s recent statements open a new window into his desire to improve Indo-Pak relations. People in both countries are tired of confrontation and hostility.

Mr Sharif rightly chose to start his dialogue with Mr Vajpayee on lesser, though real, issues like Indo-Pak trade as the economy is shattered in both countries. Even after 52 years of our independent “existence” over 60 per cent of our population lives below or around the poverty line. People never bargained for such independence.

Kashmir may be put on the back-burner for the time being. Let us start with improving trade ties between India and Pakistan.

	M A I L B A G	Friday, February 26, 1999
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