Even when I close my eyes, I see the grief-stricken faces of Siddhu Moosewala’s parents weeping over his body. As a parent, I can feel their pain and how shattered they must be at losing their son. No parent should have to suffer in this way. Every life is precious.

The popular singer who often sang of guns, and in his videos brandished them as symbols of power, money and daredevilry, was shot dead by gun wielding assailants. Lakhs of Punjabi youth who worshipped this icon have been left in a state of shock.  

Tragically, nothing is being done to address the root of the problem - the gun culture is thriving. As parents we grieve, we fear. 

We fear that our young boys, like lakhs of impressionable youth who listen to Punjabi songs on loop, will be influenced by the gun culture that is increasingly being glorified by singers and songwriters like Mankirt Aulkah, Elly Mangat, Karan Aujla, to name a few.  We fear the Gang wars that result in some young lives being cut short by bullets, others wasted in jails. We fear the celebratory violence of the gun at festivities, where innocent lives are decimated through drunken firing.  The Punjab and Haryana High Court in 2019 statement resonated with our concerns.

Do you know, there are nearly 4 lakh active licensed weapons in Punjab as of 19th January, 2022 according to the data released by S. Karuna Raju, the state’s chief electoral officer. Punjab’s population is 2% of India’s total population, but its licensed weapons are over 10% of the country’s!  And this is not taking into account the number of Unlicensed weapons! Experts warn that misinformed and false  notions of ‘Punjabiyat’ and masculinity,  coupled with rising unemployment levels and drug abuse will only lead to Punjab’s toxic gun culture getting more deeply entrenched.

There will be more deaths, more sons lost, more grieving parents if we merely stay silent and do nothing. 

Sign my petition appealing to the Education Minister Punjab, the Education Secretaries Punjab and U.T.Chandigarh Administration, Vice Chancellors and  DIrectors Youth Welfare of  Punjab University Chandigarh,  Guru Nanak Dev University(GNDU) Amritsar, and Punjabi University Patiala,  to  sensitize youth about  the dangers of  gun culture by making   “Punjab Against Guns” , the theme of the University Youth Festivals this year. 

 

Teachers have the ability to influence and inspire young minds. They are like ‘second parents’, responsible for building the future of the nation, and they can play an important role in this fight against gun culture. They can mentor students as they prepare for the  Youth Festivals  by debunking false notions of ‘Punjabiyat’ and masculinity,  promoting critical thinking, and helping them to express their thoughts and feelings creatively against gun culture  in performances, writings and art. 

With the joint efforts of  administrators and  teachers  in Punjab, the University Youth Festivals can be turned into a revolutionary force for a great cause. Therefore, through this petition we also appeal to teachers, counsellors and heads of institutions in schools and colleges of Punjab to do their bit.

Let’s have ballads, and not bullets. Let’s save Punjab’s youth, let’s save lives. Let’s reclaim true Punjabiyat.

Sign and share our petition NOW! 

Thank you,

Worried but hopeful parents