GURUDONGMAR-GURDWARA CONTROVERSY
Punjab
CM wants Sikkim CM to help restore gurdwaras in North Sikkim
The sacred lake of Gurudongmar in Lachen, North Sikkim.
Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal has urged
Sikkim Chief Minister Pawan Kumar Chamling to help in restoration work of
gurdwaras in north Sikkim, including at the sacred Gurudongmar Lake in Lachen,
located at the Indo-Tibet (China) border in north Sikkim.
In a letter to Chamling last month the Punjab Chief
Minister said a number of gurudwaras in Gurudongmar, Thangu, Chungthang,
Tumthang and Lachung in north Sikkim, which
relate to first Sikh Guru, Guru Nanak Dev’s (1469 –1539) visit to Sikkim, have
been removed and sought Chamling’s intervention to assist a team of Shiromani
Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), Amritsar, the apex religious
representative body of the Sikhs, to restore the gurudwaras in these areas.
Local Sikkimese believe that Gurudongmar Lake
(17,200 ft) and Chungthang’s holy rock are some of the most sacred Buddhist
pilgrimage destinations in the former Buddhist Kingdom. These two places were
among many sacred spots which were blessed by Guru Rinpoche when he visited
Sikkim in the 8th century. It was Guru Rinpoche who was chiefly responsible for establishment of Buddhism in Tibet and the Himalayan belt.
In 1997-98 during Chamling’s first term in office
the 20 Punjab Regiment stationed in Lachen made concerted efforts to convert
the holy lake of Gurudongmar into a Sikh
pilgrimage destination by building a gurdwara. When the locals opposed this
move vehemently the Chamling Government decided to restore the area to its
pristine glory.
The controversial issue has now surfaced at a time
when relations between India and China seems to be improving and when the first
batch of Hindu pilgrims have just left for Kailas-Manasovara Yatra
in Tibet through Nathula in east Sikkim.
