AMRITSAR: The Shiromani Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee, the apex religious body for the Sikh community has alleged that a Gurudwara in Arunachal Pradesh was converted into a Buddhist shrine.
On April 8, the chief minister of Arunachal Pradesh shared photos on his social media page along with a caption, “Guru Padmasambhava, a symbol of peace, spiritual perfection, knowledge & wisdom. Blessed to have visited Neh-Pema Shelpu Drupkhang near Mechukha, a Buddhist pilgrimage site where Guru Padmasambhava meditated. Offered prayers and sought blessings for all.”
According to the president of Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee, Harjinder Singh Dhami, the photos where Pema Khandu had taken the photos were actually from a Gurudwara which was allegedly converted into a Buddhist shrine and mentioned that the place was actually linked to Guru Nanak Dev in Mechuka of Arunachal Pradesh
The Memba community of the state of Arunachal Pradesh however maintain that the site which is known as Neh-Pema Shelpu was converted into a Gurudwara when the members of the Sikh Regiment of the Indian Army were deployed in Mechuka in 1986. Thus this action was taken by the local community.
According to the legends, during one of his journeys to Tibet, Guru Nanak Dev had stopped in Mechuka of Arunachal Pradesh and medicated there. Later, a Gurudwara was constructed to mark the location where he stopped for meditation which was considered a holy site for the Sikh people.
However, the president of the religious body iterated that the conversion of a place of worship into another community’s religious place was a violation of Section 25(Freedom of conscience and free profession, practice and propagation of religion) of the Indian Constitution. He called for the immediate intervention of the President, Prime Minister and Home Minister of the country regarding this matter. He also called upon the National Minority Commission for proper action.
Also Watch: