The Sikh community in India has expressed dismay and anger following reports in Pakistani local media outlets that the Gurdwara Shaheed Bhai Taru Singh in Lahore has been closed to the public. Claiming that the shrine is a mosque, the Pakistan’s Evacuee Trust Property Board sealed the gurdwara, Punjabi TV news channel PTC News reported on Wednesday. All roads leading to the shrine have also been blocked.
“It’s the duty of the Indian government to take up the matter with the Pakistani officials. It seems it has become a habit of the people to conquer places of minorities,” said former Punjab minister and senior Shiromani Akali Dal leader, Daljit S Cheema.
Pakistani Twitter user Nassra Khan questioned the government’s silence on the matter and asked what Punjab Chief Minister Pervaiz Elahi was “up to”.
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Old dispute
The Gurdwara in Naulakha Bazaar, Lahore, was built in honour of Bhai Taru Singh, who was executed in 1745 on the orders of the Mughal governor of Punjab, Zakariya Khan.
But this is not the first time that the ETPB has prevented people from entering the gurdwara. Much like Babri Masjid, the shrine remains a disputed site, and is a bone of contention between local Sikhs and Muslims.
“…This is Shaheed Ganj Mosque converted into a gurdwara during the Sikh rule. British era courts had decided that the status quo cannot be changed. Sad,” former chairman, Delhi Minorities Commission, Zafarul-Islam Khan said on Twitter.
In 2011, the Pakistan government had sealed the site, preventing people from observing the death anniversary of the martyr. In 2020, the Indian government lodged a strong protest with the Pakistan High Commission over attempts to convert it into a mosque.
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Who is Bhai Taru Singh?
Bhai Taru Singh, a young farmer from Poohla, a village close to Amritsar, was well-known for aiding Sikh soldiers while under the reign of Punjab governor Zakariya Khan, who eventually tortured him to death. The shrine is located at the site of his execution in Naulakha Bazaar, which some Muslim organisations have laid claim to.
The presence of a mosque close to the location of Bhai Taru Singh’s martyrdom sparked outrage from the Sikh community. The issue eventually made its way to court during British rule.
“The Sikh community was favoured by the court. On 7 July 1935, the mosque was destroyed in front of British officials. Additionally, it sparked communal conflict in Lahore,” Shahid Shabbir, a historian working on the Sikh history in Pakistan stated in an interview with The Indian Express.
ThePrint reached out to the Pakistan’s Evacuee Trust Property Board. The story will be updated with their response.
(Edited by Tarannum Khan)