Nepal has a small but a vibrant Sikh community that is best known for
its role as transporters, who opened Nepal to the modern world. Not
many, though, know that Nepal’s Sikh heritage dates to Guru Nanak Dev,
who travelled through Nepal during his third udasi.
Marking his
sojourn in Kathmandu is Nanak Math, which has a peepul tree marking the
exact spot where Guru Saheb meditated. The math, like a few other
shrines in Kathmandu, is linked to the Udasi tradition and has a mahant
presiding over it. The shrine is not well-known and remains neglected;
this prompted author Desmond Doig to call it the “forgotten shrine of
the Sikhs”. Nepal also boasts several handwritten copies of the Guru
Granth Sahib, including a couple in the Pashupatinath Temple complex.
The
Sikh connection with Nepal developed during the reign of Maharaja
Ranjit Singh when the armies of the Sikh and Gorkha courts fought
inconclusively in the Kangra region. The valour of the Gorkhas led the
Lahore Court to recruit them. Even today, Nepalese serving in the Indian
Army are colloquially referred to as “Lahureys”.
Later,
when Maharani Jind Kaur escaped from the British, she came to Nepal and
lived in the country for several years. Accompanying her was a large
body of Sikhs. When she left Nepal, many of them settled down in the
area around Nepalgunj, bordering Uttar Pradesh. Retaining their Sikh
identity, including wearing unshorn hair and maintaining gurudwaras in
the villages of their concentration, they are a community largely
missing in the annals of the Sikh diaspora.
In
modern times, Sikhs have played pioneering roles in Nepal not only as
transporters but also as engineers, doctors, police officers, teachers,
educationists, pilots, and even as fashion designers. Indeed, the person
credited with laying the first drinking water pipes in Kathmandu was a
Sikh, Manohar Singh. And, of course, by setting up the first
restaurants, they paved the way for popularising Punjabi cuisine in
Nepal.
The
story of Sikh transporters is legendary in Nepal. In the early 1950s,
hailing from the Jammu region, many of them personally navigated the
newly laid tracks of the Tribhuvan Highway, and crossed rivers to haul
their trucks to Kathmandu. They also started the first public bus
service in the country, and have been active in the setting up of modern
schools in the country.
The Sikh community in Nepal in the 1980s
totaled more than a few thousand and built a grand gurudwara in
Kathmandu’s Kupondole neighbourhood, apart from smaller gurudwaras in
Birgunj, Nepalgunj and Krishnanagar. It is further enriched by Nepalis
like Sardar Gurbaksh Singh embracing Sikhism.
India’s diplomatic
ties with Nepal also have a strong Sikh connection with Sardar Surjit
Singh Majithia being the first ambassador and establishing the embassy
in 1947. His arrival and departure, by air, saw the first uses of the
landing strip that is now the runway at Tribhuvan International Airport.
As
we celebrate the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev, the Sikh
connection of Nepal will be further strengthened as Nepal has started
minting three commemorative coins – two in silver with denomination of
Nepali Rupees 2,500 and 1,000 and a cupronickel coin with a face value
of Nepali Rupees 100 – to be launched on this auspicious occasion. Nepal
is one of few countries issuing legal tender featuring a Sikh
connection.
Manjeev Singh Puri is India’s ambassador to Nepal
The views expressed are personal
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