Punjab Post Daily Online Newspaper & Print Media
Amritsar, June 23(Punjab Post Bureau)- A two-day National Seminar on Baba Banda Singh Bahadar : Life and Heritage dedicated to tri-century martyrdom celebrations of Baba Banda Singh Bahadar was inaugurated here today in the Auditorium of Sri Guru Granth Sahib Bhawan of the Guru Nanak Dev University. This seminar is being organized by Centre on Studies in Sri Guru Granth Sahib in association with SGPC.
Jathedar Avtar Singh, President, SGPC presided over while Vice-Chancellor Prof. A.S. Brar inaugurated the seminar. Prof. Dilbagh Singh, former Professor, Jawahar Lal Nehru University, New Delhi delivered the keynote address. Prof. Gulzar Singh Kang, Director of Seminar welcomed the chief guest and others. Dr. Balwant Singh Dhillon, Coordinator of the Seminar gave the details about the seminar and introduced the guest speakers. Dr. Amarjit Singh presented vote of thanks.
Five books on Baba Banda Singh Bahadar and Sikh Religion edited by the faculty of the Centre were also released by the chief guest and an official website of the centre ‘Gyananjan’ was also launched on this occasion. Dr. Jaswinder Kaur Dhillon gave the details about the contents of the books.
Prof. Brar in his inaugural address said that research needed to be biased free. He said that sometimes research is inspired by individuals, which does not analize the real facts. He said that biased free scientific and balanced research should be encouraged. He said that the contribution of Baba Banda Singh Bahadur is unparallel and more and more research is needed to be done, so that not only nation but world could know about this great personality. He said that proceedings of this seminar will be published in the form of book and University would always encourage this type of activity.
Jathedar Avtar Singh said that Baba Banda Singh Bahadur rendered his selfless services to demolish the injustice and was the first leader who laid the foundation of Sikh sovereignty. He also gave the details about the celebration arrangements made to celebrate tri centenary of martyrdom of Baba Banda Singh Bahadur by the SGPC. He said that more research needed to be done on Baba Banda Singh Bahadur as well as world famous worriers like S. Hari Singh Nalwa. He also donated Rs. 50 lac to strengthen more research on Sikh religion.
In his keynote address, Prof. Dilbagh Singh highlighted the representation of Sikh movement under the leadership of Baba Banda Singh Bahadur in the contemporary Persian historiography by Sikh sources and Rajasthani sources. He also pointed the limitations of modern historiography on this phase of the Mugal-Sikh relations. He said that the biasness of Mugal court accounts in their dealing with the Sikhs and their deliberate omission of the aims and objectives of Baba Banda Singh Bahadur was reflected from the sources available on Baba Banda Singh Bahadur. He also made an assessment of the nature of Baba Banda Singh Bahadur’s movement in the light of Mugal-Persian sources, Rajasthani sources and writings of modern historian. He extended the principle of social equality to the realm polity by giving high officers in administration to persons belonging to lower classes. His spectacular success against the Mugals and ability to win a vast tertiary in less than one year are unprecedented, he added.
