For inquiries, contact us at TheAmritsarTalks@gmail.com In the late 19th century, Swami Dayanand Saraswati arrived in Punjab from Gujarat and began promoting the Arya Samaj, a sect aimed at reforming Hindu society. Although he presented it as a casteless movement, his goal seemed to create a divide between Hindus and Sikhs. His critiques of Sikh gurus sparked debates on Hindu-Sikh relations, with scholar Giani Ditt Singh effectively countering his arguments. In the 20th century, the right-wing upper-caste Hindu organization RSS emerged, advocating for a Hindu Rashtra to unify various religious identities under Hinduism. In response, Sikh scholars have worked to assert Sikh identity and counter misconceptions that Sikhs are simply Hindus. Dr Sukhpreet Singh Udhoke, a Sikh scholar, wrote a book 28 years ago to inform Sikhs about the RSS’s narratives and their political implications. We recently interviewed him to explore how perceptions have changed since then.
