PM Modi instrumental in fulfilling demands of Sikhs, says Sikh-American leader

PTI

Washington, June 8

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been instrumental in fulfilling the demands and wishes of the Sikh community from the US, an influential Sikh-American leader has said.

Jassee Singh, Chairman of the 'Sikhs of America' oraganisation founded to raise awareness about the community, said the official state visit of Modi to the US later this month is a "historic moment" for India.

Prime Minister Modi will embark on his first state visit to the US at the invitation of President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden this month. The US president and the First Lady will also host Modi at a state dinner on June 22.

“This is a very, very historic moment for India that the Prime Minister is coming,” said Singh, who has been a part of all Sikh delegations that the prime minister has met during his visits to the US since 2015.

Singh said the Sikh delegations have always presented a memorandum to Modi and almost all of their wishes were met by the prime minister. This time again, a delegation of the Sikh community is planning to meet the prime minister to thank him for his contribution to the community, he said.

“I think the first time we met Prime Minister Modi was in 2014. This was the first time after a long time, a Sikh delegation met an Indian Prime Minister. The response that we got was very positive from Prime Minister Modi," Singh told PTI.

"He understood the problems of the Sikhs,” he said.

Modi has been instrumental in fulfilling the demands and wishes of the Sikh community from the US, he said.

Singh said that in recent times, no other prime minister has done for the Sikh community what Prime Minister Modi did.

He recalled the steps the Modi government has taken for the Sikh community.

Be it celebrating December 26 as the Veer Baal Diwas, Guru Nanak Dev Ji's 550th birth celebrations, the opening of the SIT for the 1984 riots and putting Congress leader Sajjan Kumar behind bars, or the repealing of the blacklist of Sikhs living overseas who would not able to go back to India, or repealing the agriculture laws, the prime minister has always been with the Sikhs, he said.