SUBHASH MISHRA
Dhanbad, Oct 30: The Jharkhand Sikhs have urged the PMO (Prime Minister’s Office) to stop the auction of the ‘Darbar Saheb ‘ model given to Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a gift by the Gurudwara Prabhandhan Committee when he visited Amritsar ‘Swarna Mandir’ eight years ago.
The Jharkhand Sikh Welfare Society (JSWS) today shot off a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi as well as the PMO requesting them to stop the auction of this model of ‘Darbar Saheb’ as it is not an ordinary model which can be purchased and sold albeit it is a symbol of the Sikh community’s sentiment and a symbol of the faith of Sikh religion.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had in 2015 visited Amritsar ‘Swarna Mandir’ where the Gurudwara Prabandhan Committee presented him with a model of ‘Darbar Saheb’ as a mark of respect to the Prime Minister.
“We got information through media reports that the PMO is going to auction the gifts given to the Prime Minister. A model of ‘Darbar Saheb’ presented to him by the Prabandhan Committee of Amritsar ‘Swarna Mandir’ is also on the list for the same. The Jharkhand Sikh community strongly opposes this (auction of ‘ Darbar Saheb ‘ model),” said Sardar Sewa Singh, the president of the Jharkhand Sikh Welfare Society (JSWS).
The JSWS president has asked the PMO whether the PMO has plunged into such a financial crisis that it needs to sell an important gift (that is a symbol of the religious faith of a community) given to the Prime Minister.
“Jharkhand Sikhs hope you and your PMO would keep sentiment and dignity of the Sikh community in mind and stop the auction of the ‘Darbar Saheb ‘ model immediately,” said Sardar Sewa Singh in his letter to the Prime Minister.
