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NEWS February 20, 2003 It all started a couple of months ago when Paramdeep Singh received a phone call from a Sikh man he met on a train ride in Sheffield (UK). The Sikh man, Bhagwant Singh, described how his disabled father was asked quite rudely to leave the divaan hall of a Gurdwara in the UK because he was in a wheelchair. The same thing happened in Canada where his father was threatened that his wheelchair would be thrown out unless he left the divaan hall. It was that conversation which inspired Paramdeep to start a petition to stop discriminatory practices against disabled persons at Gurdwaras. As the petition went online, Paramdeep has been contacted by many people who painfully describe what has happened to their parents in Gurdwaras around the world. When Paul Singh went on a trip to the Golden Temple with his mother, they were stopped by a sevadaar who said that his mom, who was in a wheelchair, could not enter because the wheels were made of leather. The sevadaar said that they would have to leave the wheelchair outside, although a special chair would be provided for his mother. They were sent to an office within the complex where they waited for almost three hours. When the sevadaar returned with the special chair, they were really surprised. A chair was placed upon two long poles. "It took four of us to carry the chair all around the complex," said Paul. "That chair was so heavy. With the poles it must have weighed over a hundred pounds. We had to take many breaks and our hands were hurting. We did not even get to see the whole complex. " Paul sent e-mails to the SGPC asking them to explain the actions of the sevadaar and to ask them where in Sikhi it says that no wheelchairs are allowed. He did not get a response. Angered and dismayed, Paul says that "next time we go, I will make sure the wheelchair is allowed in, even if involves causing a big scene. I cannot imagine how my mother felt. She must have been embarrassed because everyone was staring at us." Discrimination against disabled persons at Gurdwaras has occurred against non-Sikhs also. Harjinder Singh described an incident at a Gurdwara in the UK when some non-Sikhs came to visit. Among them was a woman in a wheelchair. The group had made inquires in advance to make sure that they would not have any problems with their visit. They were assured that a sevadaar would welcome them. All went well until they reached the divaan hall where a gentleman told the woman in the wheelchair that she was only allowed in the back of the divaan hall and that she was not to go near the Sri Guru Granth Sahib. Harjinder Singh said, "the lady was in tears and felt very much put down and treated like some kind of second-class citizen. She was angry enough to consider suing the Gurdwara, but her friends calmed her down. The Sikhs present felt very uncomfortable, and felt that a great disservice was done to the panth." "I am not a lawyer," says Harjinder Singh, "but I know that apart from the strong arguments from Sikhi against any type of discrimination, Gurdwaras run a serious risk of being successfully sued by wheelchair users who are refused entrance into any part of the building open to the general public." But some Gurdwaras deserve recognition for their proper treatment of disabled persons. When Paul Singh and his mother went to Goindwal Sahib, they said they experienced the true spirit of Sikhi there. The sevadaar helped them wash the wheels on the wheelchair and said "it was all according to Gods will, come on in." Stories like that are rare, however. Paramdeep Singh keeps
hearing from people whose disabled parents face the indignity of maltreatment
by Gurdwara sevadaars. It is his hope that the petition will shed light
on the problem and that Sikh leaders will speak out against this. |