Sikh groups in UK have approached the government urging it not to allow former Union Minister Jagdish Tytler, former Congress MP Sajjan Kumar, ex-Punjab Police chief K P S Gill and its current DGP S S Saini to attend the ongoing Olympic Games here because of their alleged role in human rights abuses against the community in 1980s.
The government, on its part, has remained non-committal but set out policies in such cases.
In a letter to shadow Foreign Office minister John Spellar, the Foreign Office minister responsible for India, Jeremy Browne, has said that his office did not routinely comment on individual cases.
He wrote: “On the specific question of accreditation we do not routinely comment on individual cases. Our policy is clear that accreditation shall be refused to any individual who may present a safety or security risk, where their presence at the Games or in the United Kingdom would not be conducive to the public good or if there is independent, reliable and credible evidence that they have committed human rights abuses”.
Spellar, a Labour MP from Warley in the West Midlands, had written to Browne on behalf of his constituents about the possible attendance of the four Indians at the Olympics. In the letter dated July 26, Browne wrote that he was aware of the “level of concern in the Sikh community in Britain about the treatment of their fellow Sikhs in India,” and said Britain had noted that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had offered in Parliament an apology for the events of 1984.
Browne wrote: “We are committed to ensuring the Olympic Games are a success, help strengthen the Olympic movement and enhance the reputation of the United Kingdom as an efficient host nation and an attractive place to visit.
“We welcome all legitimate visitors to the United Kingdom, including members of the Olympic and Paralympic Games Family.”
Browne said that Britain maintained a dialogue with Indian officials about minority rights issues generally in India, including with regards to the Sikh community. The UK, he said, was “active in encouraging an improvement in the treatment of all minority communities in India.”
Browne wrote: “Our High Commission in New Delhi has discussed minority community issues with the Indian National Commission for Minorities and with various other State level authorities. Those discussions will continue. “In addition, minority rights are among the issues raised via the annual EU/India Human Rights Dialogue which is due to take place soon.”
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