SikhNet to Present 8,000 Signatures at Women's Seva Meeting in Chandigarh


A delegation of women representatives from Sikh Dharma of the Western Hemsiphere will attend the Dharam Parchar sub-committe meeting on women's seva in Chandigarh on April 25th. During their time with the committee, these representatives will present over 8,000 signatures and comments gathered through SikhNet's on-line petition (http://www.sikhnet.com/s/SevaLetter) and the Kaur Seva petition (http://www.petitiononline.com/kaurseva/petition.html).

For the past several months, both of these petitions have received support from Sikhs around the world who have expressed their desire that the Sikh leadership in Amritsar uphold Sikh principles by granting seva access to Khalsa women. The on-line signatures and comments comprise over 200 printed pages and have been collected in a three and half-inch binder to present to the committee.

In addition to the on-line petition signatures, the Sikh Dharma representatives will also present other material to the committee, including:

A letter from Siri Sardarni Bibiji Inderjit Kaur, Chief Religious Minister for Sikh Dharma of the Western Hemisphere (http://www.sikhnet.com/s/BhaiSahiba). In her letter, Bibiji calls on Sikh women to stand up for their rights to worship and live equally as Khalsa of Guru Gobind Singh.

Resolution and Recommendations by Khalsa Council of Sikh Dharma of the Western Hemisphere (http://www.sikhnet.com/s/KhalsaCouncil). Khalsa Council is an international body of ordained Sikh Dharma Ministers. In a resolution unanimously passed by the Khalsa Council during its Spring 2003 meetings, the Council calls for the implementation of the 1996 Hukamnama issued by the Akal Takhat giving women the right to perform seva at the Harimandir Sahib. Khalsa Council also offered practical suggestions for how the 1996 Hukamnama can be implemented.

Pure Longing: SikhNet's Position Paper(http://www.sikhnet.com/s/SikhNet%20Position). Recognizing that Khalsa has no gender, SikhNet stands on the position that this issue is not a women's rights issue at all, but a right to worship issue. The Gurus never divided the Panth by gender. We claim the right to wash the floors and perform Gurbani kirtan at the Harimandir Sahib and all Sikh places of worship not as women, but as Khalsa.