Reaction from the Sikh community

Protests by Sikh groups

In recent years, there have been several cases of Sikh groups protesting against the Sardarji jokes. In Folk
Narrative and Ethnic Identity: The 'Sardarji' Joke Cycle, Jawaharlal Handoo notes that the Sikh members in a
group generally do not seem to enjoy a Sardarji joke, although they may pretend to enjoy the humor of the joke
by smiling or joining the group laughter.
[1]
He also states that upon hearing a Sardarji joke, the Sikh member of
the group may fire a "counter-joke" about a non-Sikh ethnic group, such as the Baniyas.
In 2005, some Sikhs protested against a scene in the Pritish Nandy Communications (PNC) film Shabd. In the
scene, Zayed Khan tries to cheer Aishwarya Rai by telling a Sardarji joke. As he begins the joke with the words
"There was a Sardarji", Aishwarya starts giggling. A group of angry Sikhs stormed the PNC office, and
demanded that the scene be deleted from the film.
[18]

An organization called The Sikh Brotherhood International wrote letters to the PNC, the Central Board of Film
Certification, and the National Commission for Minorities (NCM), saying that the film had hurt the sentiments
of the Sikh community. The Pritish Nandy Communications Limited tendered a written apology, stating that
they respect the Sikh community and hold it in high esteem, and they had no intention of ridiculing anybody.
[19]

The Censor Board issued directions to delete the objectionable scenes in the film.
[20]

Complaint by National Commission for Minorities
On February 25, 2005, journalist Vir Sanghvi wrote a column in Hindustan Times, saying that the NCM was
curbing free speech on behalf of the "forces of intolerance", while claiming to fight for minority rights. He
wrote that the Sardarji joke is part of the "good-natured Indian tradition", and not an example of anti-minority
feeling.
[18]
He pointed out that the best Sardarji jokes are told by the Sikhs themselves, presenting Khushwant
Singh as an example. He further went on to say that the protestors should develop a sense of humor and that "All
truth has the power to offend. Take away the offence and you end up suppressing the truth". Research has
indicated however that suggesting truth in such stereotypes in ethnic jokes is not supported by facts which are
contrary to this suggestion.
[21]
).
On March 2, 2005, The NCM filed a complaint against the Hindustan Times with the Press Council of India,
stating that "the tone, tenor and the content of the article in question has a tendency to hurt the sentiments of
Sikh community."
[22]
The Hindustan Times responded by stating that the article was not aimed to ridicule the
Sikh community in any manner, and was a criticism of the NCM, justifiable under the right of free speech under
the Constitution of India. The NCM decided not to proceed with the matter, and the case was closed as
withdrawn.
[22]

Complaints to police and court cases
Though some jokes were created by the Sikhs themselves, now it has gone out of hand.
P. S. Pasricha, the second Sikh police commissioner of the Mumbai Police.
[23]

In March 2007, around 25 Sikh youths from Sikh Media and Culture Watch (SMCW) demanded arrest of Ranjit
Parande, a Matunga-based book seller, for stocking the Santa and Banta Joke Book, a collection of Sardarji
jokes. Based on a complaint filed by a Sikh businessman, the Mumbai Police arrested Parande under section 295
of the Indian Penal Code, for "hurting religious sentiments."
[23]
The SMCW members alleged that several of the
Sardarji jokes border on the obscene, and have begun to have a demoralising effect on the Sikh youths.
[23]

They later requested the cyber cell department of the Mumbai police crime branch to "ban jokes on the internet"
which portray Sikhs as objects of ridicule. Swaranjit Singh Bajaj, the vice-president of SMCW, blamed the Sikh
humorists such as Navjot Singh Sidhu and Khushwant Singh for perpetuating the stereotypical image of
Sikhs.
[23]
Khushwant Singh, a Sikh author who has included several Sardarji jokes in his joke books, received a
notice from the secretary of SGPC in 2004, asking him to desist from hurting the sentiments of the community.
Singh also received similar notices from some Marwari organizations, the Shiv Sena and the RSS. However, he
continued to include Sardarji jokes in his subsequent joke books. In the preface to his 7th joke book, he claimed
that most of his Sardarji jokes were "pro-Sardarji".
[24]

In December 2007, India's second biggest mobile operator Reliance Communications and its head Anil Ambani
were charged by Lucknow police with "insulting a religion or faith", after Reliance sent a Sardarji joke as its
"joke of the day".
[25]
Many Sikhs in Meerut staged violent protests.
[10]
The joke originated from the website
santabanta.com, and was supplied to Reliance by OnMobile, a third party supplier. Reliance stated that the it
was not responsible for content provided by OnMobile, but apologized its subscribers and the Sikh community
in Uttar Pradesh. OnMobile also issued a public apology.
[10]

In 2013, Atul Kumar was arrested in Jalandhar for texting offensive Santa-Banta jokes, under Section 295 (A)
and IT Act.