Sahiwal’s forgotten Gurdwara Needs Urgent Attention

Shahbaz Afzal

Sahiwal: Pakistan’s archaeological landscape is home to countless historic sites which date back to as many as 8000 years. Among these sites, many are not only monuments and buildings linked with Hinduism, Sikhism and Buddhism but also with pre-historic creeds.

A number of historical and archaeological sites in the Sahiwal district of Punjab are exposed to the unkind vagaries of nature, many among these sites require urgent attention of the authorities concerned.

The region has centuries-old Gurdwaras, temples and other heritage sites of historic importance, however, most of these sites present a gloomy picture today after years of neglect. One such site is located at Gujranwala Bonga, in district Sahiwal, Punjab. This monument is perhaps the last relic of once a thriving Sikh population, to be precise, in Chak No. 44/5 L, in the district as accumulation of water and salinity have already damaged its foundations and lower parts of the walls. It seems that the Department of Archaeology Punjab remains totally unconcerned when it comes to the preservation of this site.

Muhammad Sharif, an elderly fellow, is a resident of Chak No.44/5 L. Talking to this scribe, he said that many people belonging to Sikh and Hindu communities were residents of this area, adding however after 1947, they moved to India.  and “Now there is not a single member of the Sikh community here,” he said.

When asked about the building and the art painted in building, he told that he did not know about the art but the building was constructed by a Sikh Sardar, named Sardar Wadawa Singh as a worship place for his community, adding it was the only worship place for Sikh community in the village before Partition. He also said that the land where Gurdwara was constructed belonged to Sardar Wadawa Singh.

Lambar-daar—the registered member of the village community—talking to this scribe said that no government representative has ever visited this area, adding that because it is a private land, the people of the village have not taken any interest in it.

When contacted regarding the nature of architecture of the building, Sardar Nedan Singh, a member of Sikh community, informed that the paintings on the walls of the said building reflected the life story of Guru Nanak—the founder of the Sikh religion, adding that such art was common in old Gurdwaras.