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Break free from narrow views of past: PM Modi at 1st Veer Baal Diwas celebrations
During the programme, the Prime Minister attended a ‘Shabad Kirtan’ performed by about three hundred Baal Kirtanis. The PM also flagged off a march-past by about 3,000 children in Delhi on this momentous occasion
Prime Minister Narendra Modi hailed the Sikh spiritual leader Guru Gobind Singh and his efforts to combat the “terrorism” of Mughal emperor Aurangzeb as he marked the first ‘Veer Baal Diwas’ event on Monday at Major Dhyan Chand Stadium in Delhi.
Addressing a gathering here, the PM said, “Guru Gobind Singh stood like a mountain, staunchly against Aurangzeb’s terrorism and his attempts to change India. Why were the sons of Guru Gobind, Jorawar Sahib and Fateh Sahib bricked alive? It was because Aurangzeb and his people wanted to convert them forcibly. The generation which submits to tyranny, their self-belief and their future die with them. However, those brave young men were not afraid of death.”
At the event, Modi offered tributes to Zorawar Singh and Fateh Singh, sons of Guru Gobind Singh.
The PM said today’s young generation is also taking India forward with the same determination. This makes the role of Veer Baal Diwas all the more important, he said.
During the programme, the Prime Minister attended a ‘Shabad Kirtan’ performed by about three hundred Baal Kirtanis. The PM also flagged off a march-past by about 3,000 children in Delhi on this momentous occasion.
On the occasion, PM Modi noted that world history was filled with atrocities and violence, talking about the battles fought at Chamkaur and Sirhind nearly “three centuries ago.”
Illustrating the two sides of these battles, the Prime Minister said, “On one hand there was the mighty Mughal Sultanate blinded by religious fanaticism, while on the other hand there were our Gurus gleaming in the knowledge and living by the ancient principles of India”, the Prime Minister continued, “On one hand there were heights of terror and religious fanaticism, while on the other hand, there was the pinnacle of spirituality and kindness to see God in every human being.”
The PM further informed that in the midst of all this, the Mughals possessed an army of millions, while the Veer Sahebzades of Guru had their courage. “On one hand, lakhs of Mughal forces, while on the other, there was the Veer Sahibzaade who didn’t submit at all,” he said.
Adding that the sacrifices of Sahibzaades would inspire generations, PM Modi said, “A country with such rich history should be filled with confidence, but unfortunately, under the guise of history, we were taught only certain narratives which leads to an inferiority complex.”
The PM urged the people to break free from the “narrow interpretation of the past” to lead India to a successful future.
December 26 is observed as Veer Baal Diwas hailing the valour of Guru Gobind Singh’s two youngest sons, Zorawar Singh and Fateh Singh. His sons, younger than ten years, were allegedly bricked alive from the orders of Wazir Khan, the Mughal faujdar of Sirhind, as they refused to renounce their faith and convert to Islam.
The centre’s celebrations around the ‘Veer Baal Diwas’ come as two leading authorities in Sikhism, the Akal Takht Sahib and the Shiromani Gurudwara Parbhandak Committee (SGPC), are displeased with the nomenclature ‘Veer Baal Diwas’ by the Union government.
In a statement issued on Sunday, SGPC President Harjinder Singh Dhami rejected the celebrations around the Veer Baal Diwas, saying, “The government of India is on the path of concocting Sikh history, and it is unfortunate that the president of the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (DSGMC) is supporting this. Going against the traditions of the Sikh community, observing the martyrdom day of Sahibzadas as Veer Baal Diwas is a mischievous conspiracy to undermine the greatest martyrdom and valuable heritage in the world’s religious history.”
SGPC noted that referring to them as children would belittle their tall stature and their sacrifices. The Sikh authority argued that the criterion for giving nomenclature should be Sikh history, Sikh doctrine, and beliefs.
This year marks the first Veer Baal Diwas as announced by PM Modi on the occasion of the 365th birth anniversary of the 10th Sikh guru.
