Members of Fresno’s Punjabi Sikh community will gather over the weekend to celebrate the life and legacy of a human rights activist with ties to the Central Valley.
The event honoring Jaswant Singh Khalra will be held Saturday, Sept. 19, at the Fresno park that bears his name.
It’s being held close to the anniversary of his death in 1995.
Similar observations are being held in communities across the United States, including Sacramento, Lathrop and the Bay Area.
Khalra gained global recognition by investigating the illegal killings of 25,000 people involving the Punjab police, The Fresno Bee previously reported.
“This is a collective community trauma, and I think the diaspora wants to find constructive channels to heal and to recognize that injustices occurred,” Singh’s daughter, Navkiran Kaur Khalra, told The Fresno Bee via phone.
Here’s what to know:
Sikh men walk in front of murals depicting Jaswant Singh Khalra and other human rights activists in Fresno.
Who was Jaswant Singh Khalra?
Jaswant Singh Khalra was a bank director in Amritsar in the northern Indian state of Punjab in the early 1990s when he began noticing that some of his colleagues had stopped showing up for work.
Khalra started investigating their disappearances and allegedly uncovered thousands of disappearances and extrajudicial killings by Indian security forces.
Khalra campaigned on behalf of the missing people’s families and filed a petition with the Supreme Court of India, claiming police had cremated the bodies of 25,000 such individuals after identifying them “unidentified” and “unclaimed,” Al Jazeera reported.
“I will challenge the darkness, even if I am just that one candle, that one light,” Khalra said in one of his final speeches.
On Sept. 6, 1995, Khalra was abducted by police, tortured and murdered. His body was never found.
Several police officials were later convicted in his killing.
“Satluj,” a movie based on Khalra’s life and starring popular Indian actor and singer Diljit Dosanjh, was released on streaming platform ZEE5 in July, then abruptly removed two days later.
ZEE5 said in a July 5 statement that the film would be unavailable in India “until further notice” because of “current developments,” but did not explain what they were.
A Sikh man photographs his associate in front of murals depicting Jaswant Singh Khalra and other human rights activists in Fresno.
What are human rights activist’s ties to Fresno?
Jaswant Singh Khalra’s family has ties to Fresno.
His daughter Navkiran Kaur Khalra is a Fresno State alumna who now works in the Bay Area, while her husband’s family is from the Central Valley, The Bee previously reported.
In September 2017, the city of Fresno named a park after Jaswant Singh Khalra.
Nearly eight years later, Fresno’s Central Unified School District named a new elementary school after Khalra, making it the first public school in North America to be named after a person of Sikh descent.
Hardev Singh, one of the organizers of Saturday’s event, told The Fresno Bee that community members came up with the idea of commemorating the anniversary of Khalra’s death about eight years ago.
“A group of 20 elder members of the Sikh community used to sit in the park during the evening,” Singh recalled “Then we came up in idea that we should tell the people about martyrdom of Jaswant Singh Khalra to the local communities.”
Singh said Khalra fought for the human rights for all people, irrespective of their religion, caste and creed.
When and where is event honoring Sikh activist’s legacy?
Saturday’s memorial will take place at Jaswant Singh Khalra Neighborhood Park, 3861 West Clinton Ave. in Fresno.
Organized by the Khalra Park Committee of Elders, Indo-U.S. Heritage Forum Fresno and the Jakara Movement, the event will start at 9 a.m. with Sikh prayers.
“We will have speakers shedding light on the life of Jaswant Singh Khalra,” Singh said, and free snacks will be provided.
Khalra’s wife, Parmjit Kaur Khalra, and their daughter will also attend the event.
Navkiran Kaur Khalra said the event is aimed at preserving her father’s legacy as well as the collective memory of mass disappearances and deaths that he revealed.
“His legacy is bigger than just one person,” she said.
She said younger Sikh community members in the United States are actively seeking ways to honor Khalra’s legacy.
“Now I feel like this younger generation is trying to find channels to memorialize and help the community accept, acknowledge and move toward healing,” she said.
“Talking about injustices and truths is central to our faith, and we should stand up against injustice,” Navkiran Kaur Khalra said. “It’s encouraging that they take the time to remember Jaswant Singh Khalra and discuss the causes for which he fought.”
Navkiran Kaur Khalra said the gathering offers a constructive way to learn from the past, emphasizing that history should not repeat itself and that the injustices faced by one community should not be visited upon others.
“There are always lessons to be learned,” she said.