BESTOW the Status of ‘Qaumi Shaheed’ upon Bhai Jaswant Singh Khalra for Defending the Rights of Pro-Khalistan Sikhs Against India’s Policy of Extermination
ORGANIZE Shaheedi Samagam at the Akal Takht Sahib on September 6, 2026 marking the 31st Year of Shaheedi of Bhai Jaswant Singh Khalra.
Jathedar Sahib Ji:
Waheguru Ji Ka Khalsa, Waheguru Ji Ki Fateh.
We write to you with the utmost reverence for Sri Akal Takht Sahib, established by Dhan Dhan Sri Guru Hargobind Sahib Ji as the supreme temporal seat of the Sikh Panth—the eternal beacon of justice, sovereignty, and truth for the global Sikh nation.
Following the historic traditions of the Akal Takht Sahib in honoring those who defend the Panth at the cost of their lives, we formally petition you to declare Bhai Jaswant Singh Khalra a Qaumi Shaheed.
Bhai Jaswant Singh Khalra’s monumental sacrifice represents a defining chapter in the modern struggle for Sikh rights and sovereignty within India. At a time when the Indian government sought to systematically crush the Sikh nation, he fearlessly stood up for pro-Khalistan Sikhs and defended the memory of those who were ruthlessly eliminated.
Bhai Jaswant Singh Khalra firmly stood for and supported the Sikh right to self-determination, explicitly conveying to the world that from June 1984 to 1995, the successive Indian government’s policy was to exterminate pro-Khalistan Sikhs who were actively fighting armed forces, their supporters, and their families to crush the Khalistan movement. Operating at the cost of immense personal peril, he meticulously audited municipal records India’s Punjab region to uncover the illegal, secret mass cremations of thousands of pro-Khalistan Sikhs and youth who had been extrajudicially executed and deliberately left unidentified and unclaimed by Indian security forces.
To systematically enforce extermination of Pro Khalistan Sikhs, Punjab was placed under direct President's rule (central government rule) continuously from October 1983 through September 1985 and was declared a “Disturbed Area” under the Punjab Disturbed Areas Act and the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA). From May 11, 1987, to February 25, 1992, the Indian government again dismissed the elected government in Punjab and again imposed President’s Rule, enforcing direct governance by the central government. Through these pseudo legal mechanisms, the local Punjab administration and Punjab police were being directly controlled and commanded by the Central Government in Delhi.
Furthermore, India’s Parliament enacted aggressive counterinsurgency legislation that facilitated severe human rights violations and systematically shielded security forces from accountability. The National Security Act was specifically amended to allow for detention without trial for up to two years in Punjab for acts deemed prejudicial to the security or defense of India. Additionally, the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act of 1987 (TADA) provided police with sweeping powers of search, seizure, and arrest. Armed with this legislative immunity, the Indian government deployed vast central security forces, utilizing companies of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), the Border Security Force (BSF), and specialized police battalions from other states across India, including the Madhya Pradesh (MP) Police. These notorious special Indian forces of majoritarian Hindu police officers operated under direct orders from the central Indian government to violently crush the Khalistan movement.
The factual weight of Bhai Khalra’s work remains undeniable:
Meticulous Evidence: His initial investigations conclusively documented over 2,000 illegal cremations of unidentified pro-Khalistan Sikhs in Amritsar district alone.
Exposing Systemic Violations: His research laid the groundwork for uncovering an estimated 25,000 enforced disappearances across Punjab, bringing unprecedented international scrutiny to the grave violations committed by the Indian government against the Sikh population fighting for Khalistan.
Global Advocacy: He courageously took this evidence to international platforms, ensuring that the global community could not ignore the genocidal violence orchestrated by India against pro-Khalistan Sikhs, youth, and freedom fighters who asserted their right to self-determination through Khalistan.
Because he refused to compromise on the truth, Bhai Jaswant Singh Khalra was abducted from his home on September 6, 1995.
Bhai Khalra was subjected to severe custodial torture and extrajudicially executed, paying the ultimate price for his devotion to justice, his community, and the Khalistan movement.
Bhai Jaswant Singh Khalra did not merely perform human rights work; he fulfilled a profound Gurmat duty to stand against tyranny, protect the oppressed, and honor the fallen fighters of the Sikh nation against the Indian government. His martyrdom remains an immortal pillar of integrity, resilience, and the unyielding pursuit of self-determination for the Sikh Panth.
Furthermore, as we approach the solemn milestone of his sacrifice, we humbly request that Sri Akal Takht Sahib officially organize a Shaheedi Samagam at the Akal Takht Complex on September 6, 2026 marking the 31st Year of Shaheedi of Bhai Jaswant Singh Khalra.
To honor a legacy of this magnitude, we pray that you issue a historic call from the supreme temporal seat, mobilizing a congregation of 1 Million Sikhs to gather in his memory. Such a monumental gathering will serve as a powerful testament to global Sikh unity, a collective refusal to forget the martyrs of the Panth, and an enduring demand for justice, truth, and the right to self-determination against the structures of the Indian government.
Therefore, we humbly request that you, as the Jathedar of Sri Akal Takht Sahib, personally lead the community in formally bestowing the status of Qaumi Shaheed upon Bhai Jaswant Singh Khalra, organizing this historic Shaheedi Samagam, and rallying the Sikh Panth to Amritsar on 6 September 2026.
Sincerely yours,
