Dal Khalsa

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See Dal Khalsa (Sikh Empire) for the Sikh army that operated in 17th and 18th-century Punjab.

Contents 1 Introduction 2 Revival of the Dal Khalsa 3 Dal Khalsa takes on a larger agenda 4 Dal Khalsa at the launch of PNSD at the British Parliament 5 External links

[edit] Introduction

Dal Khalsa (International) is a Sikh separatist political organization based in the city of Amritsar (Punjab). The primary aim of the Dal Khalsa (International) is to achieve the independence of Punjab from India in order to establish a sovereign Sikh state of Khalistan. The Dal Khalsa (International) was founded in 1978 by Gajinder Singh in the aftermath of a clash between Sikhs belonging to the Akhand Kirtani Jatha and the followers of a Sikh sect known as the Nirankaris (whom other Sikhs regard as heretics) at a Nirankari event at the Harmandir Sahib in Amritsar on April 13, 1978, in which 3 Nirankaris and 13 Sikhs were killed. ^[1] A 10 year ban was put on the Dal Khalsa (International) by the Indian government in 1982 following the 1981 hijacking of an Indian plane that was forced to land in Lahore in protest over the arrest of Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale.

[edit] Revival of the Dal Khalsa

The Dal Khalsa (International) was revived in 1998 and continues to commit to its original objective of establishing an independent Punjab. The main base of the Dal Khalsa (International) is in Amritsar, a holy Sikh city in the Punjab. The Dal Khalsa (International) has also established units in the United States and the United Kingdom. The revived Dal Khalsa has pledged to put aside armed resistance and further the cause of Khalistan by peaceful and democratic means.

[edit] Dal Khalsa takes on a larger agenda

On September 30th, 2005, the co-founder of the Dal Khalsa, Gajinder Singh (currently residing in Pakistan) stepped down as Chairman of the organization. Satnam Singh Paonta, himself one of the original Dal Khalsa founders, was chosen as the new President on October 2nd (2005) at a convention held in Chandigarh. In addition to Satnam Singh Paonta being chosen as the new leader of the Dal Khalsa, the organization welcomed Jaspal Singh Dhillon, head of the Human Rights and Democracy Forum into the party fold as its new vice President.

The new senoir leadership of the Dal Khalsa (International) has pledged that it will continue to deploy peaceful methods to achieve independence for Punjab and will now also take up other socio-political issues faced by the people of Punjab such as education for rural children and tackling the menace of drug abuse. However, the primary objective of the Dal Khalsa remains the same and the organization has stated that it will not divert from its original and main goal of establishing an independent and sovereign Sikh majority state of Khalistan.

In June 2005, the Dal Khalsa became a constituent member of the Punjab Rights Forum

[edit] Dal Khalsa at the launch of PNSD at the British Parliament

In May 2006 the Vice-President of the Dal Khalsa, Jaspal Singh Dhillon, paid a visit to London, UK where he had been invited to attend and deliver a speech on Self-determination for Khalistan at the inaugural launch and conference of a new lobby group called Parliamentarians for National Self-Determination (PNSD) which was held on May 11th at the British Parliament in Westminster. The Dal Khalsa has sought to work closely with Parliamentarians for National Self-Determination in which the Sikh Nation is one of the founder members.

[edit] External links

• Official site of the Dal Khalsa
• Official site of Dal Khalsa America
• Dal Khalsa (International) Unofficial site
• A Timeline of Sikh Religious and Political History
• Dal Khalsa at the launch of Parliamentarians for National Self-Determination