8 October 2023

The New Zealand Sikh National Assembly convened on Sunday 8 October 2023 at Gurdwara Dukh Niwaran Sahib — 7/46 Broadway, Papakura, Auckland, New Zealand to address Sikh safety concern and foreign Indian interference.

The Assembly commenced at 3 pm with an ardas and the hukamnama of Guru Granth Sahib 813. Subsequently, New Zealand Sikh speakers communicated the predicaments experienced by Sikhs in India and shared information pertaining to India's involvement in the martyrdom of Shaheed Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada, as revealed by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Resolutions were presented in the Assembly and a brief discussion ensued, which was decided to be continued later.

Sikh speakers from Canada shared their experiences about Shaheed Hardeep Singh Nijjar, the President of Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara in Canada and how he was a compassionate, humble and determined Sikh who immigrated to Canada to escape persecution and torture in India.

The Government of India oppressed Shaheed Hardeep Singh Nijjar by designating him a terrorist based on unsubstantial allegations, seizing his ancestral property and harassing his relatives in India, while the Indian media defamed him based on unreliable speculation due to his pro-Khalistan public stance.

British Colombia Gurdwara Council’s Moninder Singh expressed that there is a need to establish Sikh advocacy groups to represent Sikh interests, particularly in advocating for the independence of Khalistan, a Sikh country from India. He and prior New Zealand Sikh speakers emphasised that the aspiration for 'Khalsa raj' or 'Khalistan' originates from the 'claim to sovereignty' bestowed upon the Sikhs by the Gurus.

Following the Canadian Sikh speakers, the open discussion continued, during which an advocacy group was formed from the Assembly to advocate for the following:

1. The initiation of a formal investigation by the New Zealand Government into foreign Indian interference in New Zealand. Probable interference violates the sovereignty of New Zealand and poses a safety risk for Sikhs advocating for the Sikh people's right to self-determination.

2. Endeavour to seek formal support from the New Zealand Government for the independence of Khalistan, the historic Sikh homeland from India, as declared in 1986 in Amritsar, which was annexed by the British in 1849.

At an individual capacity, there was consensus to:

1. Encourage and support Sikhs who are capable of sincerely representing common Sikh interests, to participate in the governance and media of New Zealand;

2. Counter the defamatory and prejudiced disinformation against Sikhs by the Indian media.

3. Confront vilification of the term 'Khalistan,' which translates to the ‘place of the Khalsa,' a commonly used name in the honour of the Khalsa to refer to a sovereign Sikh homeland in Asia. The Khalsa is an honourable community of initiated Sikhs revealed by Guru Gobind Singh at Anandpur Sahib in 1699.

4. Call upon representatives of gurdwaras and Sikh organisations to align with the collective will of the Sikhs and continue the endeavour of Shaheed Hardeep Singh Nijjar by openly and sincerely representing the Sikh people's right to self-determination, as enshrined in international law.

The New Zealand Sikh National Assembly session finished at 6:30 pm.