Singhs at Crossroads

The Questions were very Random and on different types of subjects, The sevadaars decided to keep the Q&A's in the same sequence as they were asked.

Were you there, when 1984 attack happened and if not where were you?

I wasn't there; I was on a flight to the west side of India. I was in the Indian Air force. The 1^st of June was when it first happened, my wife and son was there. The first attack in 1984, it was a trial, and the army wasn't there.

The paramilitary police were there when they attacked Amritsar. Our Singh's fought too; it was for 5, 6 hours fighting. The police went back; they just wanted to see how much ammunition there was and where the people were situated and where they were hiding.

Do you know how the Indian government attacked the golden temple?

It was a cowardly act by the government because our Singh's were in the Golden Temple. They started dropping down commandos and our Singh's started fighting them. They lost so many commandos' so then they brought in the army.

Our Sikhs started firing, they brought tanks inside. The Sikhs couldn't do anything and they destroyed the Akal Takht and the surrounding buildings.

What was it like when you saw Bhai Fauja Singh and you were standing next to Sant Jarnail Singh Bhindrawala?

I was still very weak, still injured badly. After the cremation we collected the ashes and bones. I was very weak so fell down there and Sant Jarnail Singh Bhrindrawala Jee supported me so that I could take the ashes to the River.

What did your family think?

In 1978 it was a Vasaakhi programme. A Kirtan programme which my family knew we were going there but no one thought of shahedee.

Has Bhai Fauja Singh Ji got any family?

He has got a wife but no children. We are the children. Bhai Hazoora Singh is his son as he lived near him, he became his son.

* Bhai Hazoora Singh Jee is the Head Granthi at Sri Guru Singh Sabha, Cross Roads. Other Singhs have also verified that Bhai Sahib used to be treated like a son by Bhai Fauja Singh Jee. Sevadaars will try and get Bhai Sahib to speak about his experiences with Bhai Fauja Singh and post them for the benefit of the Sangat.

What do you think about the Sikh situation in India?

You know the history of Maharaja Ranjeet Singh. He was the King of Punjab. He was the only King we had. When we lost the last battle, the Sikhs were betrayed. Since we lost that battle and we became the slaves we have been struggling.

What ways did Bhai Fauja Singh Jee do seva?

Bhai Fauja Singh was an ideal man. He was actually a milestone for us. When he was in the sangat, when keeratan was happening he would be in the langar doing seva. I remember there was one programme in the top pf the mountain/hill; There was no water facility there so Bhai Fauja Singh ALL DAY LONG he carried water from the bottom to the top.

On the Seva side he was on the top, we used to learn from him how to do seva. He never used to sleep when doing seva, he used to never rest. The other Gursikhs who used to the Langar seva used to say to him ‘Bhai Sahib Jee take a rest or take Parshaada (Langar), he would eat his Parshaada and then he was off again doing Seva. Nobody could think that he was a strong soldier doing this type of seva. He would grab a brush and start cleaning if he saw dirt.

I remember a incident when we went to a Gurdwara and he saw someone do toilet in a area used for Showering, he just went over after the person had finished and picked it up with his own hands. We all said ‘Bhai Sahib Jee, what are you doing?' But he didn't care and said that this is Guru Jee's place and always should be clean. We must remember he was always ready for any type of Seva. If he found something to be done, HE WOULD DO IT!!!, he was an ideal man.

*Sevadaars Note - In India in those days there were no toilet facilities at Smagams in the countryside and a designated area in the nearby fields used to be used for this facility. Bhai Sahib used to take a group of youngs Singhs and go and clean the area after the Smagam was completed. We need to appreciate the state of mind of Bhai Sahib was in to do soo much Seva. We should try to do more seva and use Bhai Sahib as a Inspiration for us. 

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