GURDWARA SAHIB SIKH POLICE, PENANG
In 1881, there was one contingent of Straits Settlements Police stationed in the compound of Fort Cornwallis, Penang. The Sikh Police personnel in this contingent were given a room at the top of the fort to be used as a place for prayers. They converted this room into their Gurdwara Sahib and anstalled terein their Holy Book, the Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji. Rhis was the first Sikh Gurdwara Sahib to be established in Penang. There was no Granti at the Gurdwara Sahib, but serving police personnel used to do sewa (service) and perform the duties of a Granthi. In 1927, the headquarters of the Straits Settlements Police was built in Patani Road, Penang.
A building was also allocated to the Police Sikh contingent personnel to be used as a Gurdwara Sahib. The first Granthi cum honorary caretaker of this Gurdwara Sahib was the late Sardar Gurbax Singh, a Police pensioner who served from 1968 to 1984. Since 1988, Sardar Mehar Singh Gill a retired Police sergeant, has been doing sewa as Granthi, Caretaker and Honorary Secretary as well as an Assistant Sikh Registrar of marriages.
Presently there are about 30 Sikh families of serving as well as retired police personnel who participate in the religious activities in this Gurdwara Sahib.
Group photograph taken on the 28th December 1927of the Officers and Rank & File of the Straits Settlement Sikh police and the sangat assembled at the Fort Cornwillis. The Guru Granth Sahib Ji was respectfully taken in a colourful procession from the Gurdwara Sahib Fort Cornwillis to the Sikh Police Gurdwara in patani Road, Penang where an Akhand was held from 28th – 30 December 1927.
GURDWARA SAHIB POLICE, KUALA LUMPUR
The Gurdwara Sahib Police High Street as it was originally know, is the second police Gurdwara to be built in Kuala Lumpur. This Gurdwara was built in 1898 by the Federated Malay States police ( F.M.S Police ). At the time more than half of the F.M.S Police were Sikh. All the Sikhs Police recruits had to under go baptism (partaking of the Amrit) under the supervision of their senior officers.
The Gurdwara Sahib Police building is a single storey semi permanent structure of brick, concrete and wood. There are double storey bloks of quarters for married police personnel, priest’s quartes, office, stores and a large kitchen at the rear of the building. The built up area is about 7000 square feet surrounded by a 7 feet high wall.
There have been no major changes to the original structure of the Gurdwara Sahib Police. The Maintenance of this Gurdwara and salary of the Granthi were initially, partally subsidized bye the F.M.S Police and later by the Malaysian Police Department up to 1969. Since then, the maintenance of the gurdwara Sahib and the salary of the Granthi have been paid from the funds of the Gurdwara Sahib Police. From 1898 to 1910 the Gurdwara Sahib Police was looked after by serving Sikh personnel of the F.M.S Police force as a Granthi was not available. They collectively conducted the daily Parkash and Semapti of the Holy Book, Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji. On Sunday all off duty Sikh Police personnel were duty bound to go to the Gurdwara Sahib Police for prayers and Karah Parshad was prepared and served.
In 1910 the late Baba Sham Singh from Gurusar Jelalka Village in Nabha, Punjab was appointed as the first Granthi in the Gurdwara Sahib. He Served as a Granthi in this Gurdwara Sahib for nearly 56 years from 1910 to 1966.
GURDWARA SAHIB POLICE JALAN PARLIAMENT, KUALA LUMPUR
By the end of the 19th century, the Federated Malay States Police were stationed at Bluff Road, which is presently the site of the Royal Malaysian Police Headquarters, and is now known as Bukit Aman. In 1890, the Federated Malay States Government built a Gurdwara Sahib for the Sikh in the Police Force to serve their religious, social dan cultural needs. This is the first Sikh Police Gurdwara in Kuala Lumpur.
In 1940 the Polis Depot (now know as PULAPOL) was shifted to Gurney Road (now knows as Jalan Semarak) in Kuala Lumpur. The old Police Depot in the Bluff Road was handed over to the Sikh Guard and Escort Company including the Sikh Temple in Jalan Parliament.
In 1961, the Sikh personnel in the Sikh Guard and Escort Company abtained a ten year lease for the Gurdwara Sahib land at Jalan Parliament from the Commissioner of land, Selangor.
GURDWARA SAHIB POLICE, IPOH, PERAK
In the 1880’s there were a few Sikh families in Ipoh area who worked as dairy farmers bullock cart drives. Around 1890 Sradar Hari Singh took lead in building a Gurdwara Sahib in Club Road to serve the Sikh religions needs. This was the first Sikh Gurdwara Sahib to be established in Ipoh.
A few years later the present Ipoh Police Station was built near the Gurdwara Sahib. Subsequently the land around the Gurdwara Sahib came to be within the compound of the Ipoh Police Station. By the 1902 there were about 60 Sikh Police Personnel serving in Ipoh. It was only a matter of time before the Gurdwara Sahib’s management was taken over by the these Sikh Police personnel. In the 1910 the Sikh Police issued order personal were not to be allowed to enter the Ipoh Police Station compound due to security reasons. The civilian Sikhs were allocated another locations in Jalan Gurdwara, Ipoh to build their Gurdwara (Wadda Gurdwara Sahib Ipoh).
Since 1910 this Gurdwara Sahib has been under the management of the Sikh Police. The Old Gurdwara Sahib building was repaired and renovated on several occasions. The Police Gurdwara Sahib was finally demolished in 1967 to make way for a new building. In 1967 a new single storey brick building was built to serve as a Gurdwara Sahib for the Sikhs Police personnel in Ipoh. The land on which this Gurdwara Sahib is sited is a Police Reserve land and is 117 feet by 108 feet in size.
The cost of this Police Gurdwara Sahib was RM 80,000.00. The Menteri Besar (Chief Minister) of the state of Perak handed over a cheque for RM 25,000.00 to Assistant Commissioner U. Sanrokh Singh on 23 August 1967 towards the cost of trhe new Gurdwara Sahib building.
