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 8^th 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.