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Press release – General Election – Sikh Council UK urges increase in selection of Sikh candidates

Sikh Council UK is urging all political parties to positively select Sikh candidates ahead of the snap General Election called for 8 June 2017.

There are no MPs from a Sikh background in the House of Commons currently.

Representatives from all the main political parties have spoken of the huge contribution that Sikhs make to British society and have acknowledged the lack of Sikhs in the House of Commons.

Sikh Council UK Secretary General Elect Jagtar Singh said “We call upon the parties to address the glaring lack of Sikhs in Westminster by shortlisting and selecting promising Sikh candidates in winnable constituencies. We will offer support to Sikh candidates who make it through the selection processes”.

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Vaisakhi Greetings and a date for your diary.

Sikh Council UK extends its warm greetings to all members and the wider community on the occasion of Vaisakhi.

It is the first day of the month of Vaisakh which is the second month in the Nanakshahi Sikh calendar. On this day in 1699, Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth Guru of the Sikhs, created the order of the Khalsa in the Sikh faith. Vaikakhi also traditionally marked the end of the spring harvest in the Punjab region of northern India.

Sikhs in the UK celebrate Vaisakhi with colourful Nagar Kirtan processions and the distribution of free food to Sikhs and non-Sikhs alike. It is a time for festivities and also new beginnings with many Sikhs choosing this time to undertake the Khalsa initiation ceremony.

With the challenges to religious identity and the practice of faith faced by Sikhs and others in recent times, Sikh Council UK is requesting in particular all Sikhs this year to share and celebrate our faith with the wider community in which we live and work. Only by getting to know our neighbours and letting them know about us and the values we stand for will we be able to foster greater understanding.

This year also marks the 350th anniversary of the birth of Guru Gobind Singh. Sikh Council UK will be holding a national event at Wymeswold Airfield Grounds in Loughborough (east midlands) on Sunday 13th August 2017 to mark the occasion. It will be the largest one day event organised by Sikh Council UK with the support of all members. More details about the event will be released in the coming weeks.

Press release – Launch of Hate Crime Monitoring: Platform for UK Sikhs

Sikh Council UK is pleased to announce the formation of Sikh Aware UK, the first ever hate crime monitoring platform for the Sikh community in the UK in partnership with several supporting partner organisations including , Khalsa Foundation, City Sikhs, Metropolitan Police Sikh Association, West Midlands Police Sikh Association, Home Office Sikh Association, Sikh Network, Sikh Helpline, Sikh Women’s Alliance and Gursevak Trust.

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Press release – Sikh Council UK condemns London terrorist atrocity; offers sincere condolences to the bereaved

Sikh Council UK offers sincere its condolences, thoughts and prayers to the innocent victims that have been killed and injured this afternoon in Westminster, London following a terrorist incident.

Sikh Council UK strongly condemns this cowardly attack, which targeted the public and attempted to attack at the heart of British democracy.

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Press release – Sikh Council UK condemns immigration scam and criticises border officials

Sikh Council UK criticised the case of an immigration racket reportedly involving Sikhs and criticised border control officials for their failure to spot it.

According to reports’ the individuals in question admitted running the scam in which they provided British passports of family members to refugees from Afghanistan who were then able to enter the UK using those passports. Border officials are said to have had difficulty spotting the refugees who were not the real passport holders due to the passport photos being of Sikhs wearing turbans.

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February 2017 – Bulletin 75

Meetings/Events

2nd February 2017 Representatives of Sikh Council UK attended 350th Prakash utsav of Sri Guru Gobind Singh Ji event in Parliament hosted by Ramgahria Council UK and Lord Suri. Jagtar Singh – Secretary General Elect- took the opportunity on stage to thank the host and address the attendees.

Over 8 members and associates of Sikh Council UK participated in an very important testing of safety face mask equipment. The revolutionary equipment is considered as Critical Life Safety Systems that will have huge impact on career choices for Sikhs in the future. Test Subjects Southampton travelled from Birmingham, Southampton and London.

Continue reading the February 2017 Bulletin…