Sikh Societies address Media regarding Bapu Surat Singh Coverage

Via Nishaan, an Inter-University Sikh Society Network

An open letter to UK News and Media Agencies,

We, the Presidents of twenty-three University Sikh Societies, are writing this letter on behalf of thousands of Sikh students from across the UK. We are deeply concerned that the media in this country is not covering the peaceful protest of Bapu Surat Singh Khalsa.

Bapu Surat Singh Khalsa is an 82 year-old Sikh activist who has been on hunger strike since 16th January 2015. He is campaigning for the release of Sikh political prisoners who have served their sentence but are still being imprisoned, some of whom were originally convicted under the controversial Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act (TADA).

We are sad to see that there has been little or no media coverage on an individual who has clearly taken a remarkable stand to champion the human rights of these prisoners. He is now into the eleventh month of his hunger strike and has remained resolute, he will not eat until these prisoners are released. This concern for the welfare of his fellow citizens has resulted in his health reaching a critical state and he is currently being cared for in an Advanced Cardiac Department.

We implore you to investigate this campaign and cover it across your news channels so that the world hears about his protest. Sikh Societies from across the country will be holding awareness campaigns at their respective universities. We invite you to engage with us so that you may learn what drives our community to support Bapu Surat Singh Khalsa.

Please send your response to this letter via email to our Nishaan address, nishaanuk@gmail.com. We will ensure that this is communicated with the University Sikh Society Presidents who have signed this letter below. For your reference, Nishaan is an Inter-University Sikh Society network and has coordinated this collective statement (www.nishaan.net).

Yours faithfully,

Imperial College London                                                University of Birmingham Sikh Society

Queen Mary University of London Sikh Society        University of Keele Sikh Society

University College London Sikh Society                      University of Leicester Sikh Society

University of Westminster Sikh Society                       University of Leeds Sikh Society

City University Sikh Society                                            Cardiff University Sikh Society

King’s College London Sikh Society                               Strathclyde Univeristy Sikh Society

London School of Economics Sikh Society                   Brunel University Sikh Society

SOAS University Sikh Society                                          Anglia Ruskin University

University of Hertfordshire Sikh Society                       Aston University

Kingston University London Sikh Society                    St George’s, University London Sikh Society

University of Oxford Sikh Society                                 University of Warwick Sikh Society

University of Medway Sikh Society                               Royal Holloway Sikh Society