Sikh Community Center Washington DC

The much-publicized visit to the Washington area by renowned Prof. Darshan Singh Ragi, who was to perform at a private event organized by Giani Kuldip Singh, failed to materialize this past Sunday.

The visit , highly publicized on local TV, national newspapers, as well as through an aggressive marketing campaign at local gurdwaras was canceled, much to the reported chagrin of Giani Kuldip Singh, by the Canada-based Prof. Ragi.

The last minute cancellation sent the supporters of Giani Kuldip Singh in a tizzy as they reportedly approached Sikh Foundation of Virginia, the gurdwara where until recently Giani Kuldip Singh was head granthi, with requests to the visiting raagis that they consider taking some time out of their Sunday schedule and perform at the much-ballyhooed event which was to be held at the residence of Daizy and Kulwant "Kanti" Matharoo.

The event was highly touted as the Baisakhi event to be this past Sunday but some local leaders were concerned that an event held in the basement of the Matharoo home could be disrespectful to the religion and to the stature of a well known figure such as Prof. Darshan Singh. The proposed visit had once again placed the pro and anti Giani Kuldip Singh camps into open public warfare as had been witnessed in the SFV gurdwara over the past few years.

SCC News was able to reach Prof. Darshan Singh on Wednesday and held an exclusive one-hour chat with him on this and other subjects. Prof. Darshan Singh took our call and answered all questions patiently and responded diligently to our queries. In the long-ranging interview, when asked why the sudden cancellation, he said that there were two mitigating factors which led to his abrupt inability to attend. One, he said, was that even though he has a US Passport, his Permanent Resident Card, which enables him to keep permanent residency in Canada, had expired. He said he only discovered this at the last minute. He feels he may have been able to still travel since he has a US Passport, but the second, and more mitigating reason  why he could not attend, is that his health had deteriorated in the past few days. Prof. Darshan Singh said he has been undergoing treatment for spine problems and had recently had an MRI done on his back. He said walking and driving are extremely painful for him.

Prof. Darshan Singh said he is trying to limit his outings for these reasons; the doctors advised him complete rest just a few days ago and as soon as he realized he would be going against the doctor's wishes, he said he alerted Giani Kuldip Singh of this decision. Prof. Darshan Singh, when probed further that he had visited a gurdwara in Nova Scotia, Canada last weekend, responded that he had visited just for one night, adding that he went a night before and than returned the next day after kirtan and did not stay long. He said it may be a month before he could resume his commitments.

When asked whether it was okay to perform in a basement of a house, he said that he had no objection, pointing out that even in the Darbar Sahib in the Golden Temple, akhand path is conducted in several places, especially near the Nishan Sahib, where granthis are underground in a room performing path seva. He added that he himself has set up an academy to teach the learnings from Guru Granth Sahib in his home in Canada, and that too is being done from the basement of his home. He said many opponents had raised such an issue in the past, as well, and that today this issue does not have any merit. "Today, if you live in a multi-story house, and people live above and below you, does that mean that a Sikh cannot live there or do paath and seva?" he asked.

Prof. Darshan Singh expounded that in historic times there used to be an issue, because many a time mud would fall from the rough construction of homes; so it was considered ill-advised to keep the Guru Granth Sahib or to do kirtan in such settings where floors were not very strong. With regards to accepting an invitation to a private home on the auspicious occasion of Baisakhi rather than performing in a gurdwara where a lot more devotees could benefit from his kirtan, Prof. Darshan Singh responded that he goes to do gurmat prachar wherever someone calls him.

He said he also steers clear of local politics or personal issues when he visit an area to do kirtan. When asked about recent controversies surrounding the gurdwaras in the Virginia area and the Giani Kuldip Singh matter, he refused to talk specifically about one issue or incident. However, he said that there were a lot of such issues nowadays in a lot of Sikh communities the world over. "Everyone wants to be a Malik...Even those who don't know much about the religion want to be a leader."

Prof. Darshan Singh was the head Jathedar of the Akal Takht in a very turbulent time for the Sikhs post Mrs Gandhi's assassination and Operation Blue Star. His parting advice to those reading this article: "Stay out of politics, and you will be a happy person."