Save Maharaja Ranjit Singh's haveli in Pakistan, Badal urges PM

Chandigarh, July 17 (IANS) Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal Tuesday sought the personal intervention of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for conservation of Maharaja Ranjit Singh's ancestral house in Pakistan.

Badal urged the prime minister to direct the external affairs ministry to take up with the Pakistan government the issue of the dilapidated condition of Maharaja Ranjit Singh's ancestral haveli at Gujaranwala and "baradri" of Maharaja Sher Singh at Lahore to ensure prompt action for proper upkeep and conservation of these historic monuments, said a spokesman of the chief minister's office.

In a letter to the prime minister, Badal noted that "Sher-e-Punjab" Maharaja Ranjit Singh was the founder of the Sikh empire which extended from the Khyber Pass in the west, to Kashmir in the north, Sindh in the south, and Tibet in the east.

"Henceforth, it is the bounden duty of the Government of India to immediately take up this issue with the Pakistan government for the proper upkeep and maintenance of these two great historic monuments, which are now in a state of sheer neglect, as a befitting tribute to the great warriors of Sikhs," Badal said.

He said that the state government was also ready to offer necessary support, if need be, for the preservation of these monuments for future generations. The historical religious sentiments of people of Punjab were linked to these monuments, Badal added.