Sri Tarn Tarn Sahib
Historic gateway demolished
Information was received last night(30/03/2019) that the historic Darshan Deori (gateway) leading to the main Gurdwara or Darbar Sahib at Tarn Tran was demolished by Kar Sewa seminary headed by Baba Jagtar Singh. The town of Tarn Tarn was founded by Guru Arjun Dev where he laid the foundation of the Gurdwara.
During the Misl period parts of the Sarowar was constructed by Jassa Singh Ahluwalia(Head of the Buddha Dal) and Budh Singh (Sukkerchakia Misl), but left uncompleted. Reconstruction of the Gurdwara and the Darshan Deori was completed during the Sikh Empire period and Kanvar Nau Nihal Singh the grandson of Ranjit Singh, played a major role in the development. Other parts of the Darshan Deori was completed by Sant Sham Singh of Amritsar in last quarter of the last quarter of the nineteenth century.
Historic Frescoes within the Darshan Deori
It is with regret that such an important gateway has given way to modernity and illogical thinking and not for the first time. So called Kar Sewa Babas-volunteers want to demolish important structures and shrines and have them recreated in the pretext of modernity and widening of Gurdwara premises for things like car parking.
In September 2018 plans for the demolition was thwarted by a last minute intervention however this time the gateway was brought down in a heap of rubble. The sangat started protesting last night and it appears that only the dome was destroyed due to the opposition of the local people.
Whilst in 1984 the Indian Government attacked the Harimandir Sahib and Sri Akal Takht Sahib it seems many of our own people are hell bent on destroying their own heritage.
The Sikh Museum Initiative will be able to recreate these structures in 3d and maybe that is all we will have in the future unless serious education is given to the SGPC, Kar Sewa Babas and others believing that modernity is the way forward.
The manager at Tarn Tarn has been suspended and an enquiry has started however the damage is done and the historic structure can be added to a long list of places which have faced the wrath of a Kar Sewa sledge hammer.
See video below