New Delhi: Acting on fresh requests from Sikh community leaders and politicians, the Government of India says it has raised concerns with Qatari authorities over a copy of the Guru Granth Sahib being held in police custody in Qatar since last year.
The Sikhs consider the Guru Granth Sahib to be a living Guru.
According to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), the government has taken cognizance of reports of the ‘swaroop’ being in custody and demands for it to be released.
“We have seen reports regarding the Guru Granth Sahib seized by the Qatari authorities and the demand of their release by the Sikh community. Government has already taken up the matter with the Qatar side and our Embassy has kept the Sikh community in Doha abreast of developments in this regard,” MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said Friday.
In December 2023, two swaroops of the Guru Granth Sahib were seized after groups were found praying at Gurudwaras, and people were charged for “running religious establishment without the approval of Government of Qatar.”
Qatari law restricts public worship of faiths other than Islam.
While the accused were released and one swaroop returned, a copy of the Granth Sahib is still in custody.
Our response to media queries regarding Guru Granth Sahib in Qatar:https://t.co/IMbwwSv1cI pic.twitter.com/0U9yQRlAo8
— Randhir Jaiswal (@MEAIndia) August 23, 2024
On the individuals and groups being charged by Qatari authorities for practicing their religion in public, the MEA noted, “Our Embassy rendered all possible assistance within the ambit of local laws and regulations.”
Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader and Member of Parliament from Bathinda Harsimrat Kaur Badal and Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) president Harjinder Singh Dhami had urged the Centre and foreign ministry to take up the cause with Qatar.
“Keeping the ‘swaroops’ confiscated at a police station is a big disrespect which cannot be tolerated,” Dhami wrote Thursday in a letter to External Affairs Minister Dr S. Jaishankar and Indian envoy to Qatar, Vipul.
He claimed that the prayer practice or ‘prakash’ was being performed on private property and not in public. Badal too claimed that the ‘prakash’ had been taking place in Qatar at two locations for over 35 years and demanded that Sikhs be allowed to profess their religion and establish Gurudwaras in Islamic countries like the UAE.
The MEA Friday noted that “the other swaroop is also kept with respect” in Qatar and assured that they “continue to follow up the matter with Qatar authorities with high priority and hope for early resolution”.
In another case last year, efforts of the Indian government helped in the reduction of the sentence of eight Indian ex-Navy personnel arrested in Qatar on charges of spying. Initially awarded the death sentence, they were later released by Qatari authorities at India’s request.
(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)
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