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Shaheed Bhai Mohinder Singh Kooner

Khalistan Liberation Force

As the very delicate information of Shaheed Singhs slowly begin to surface, it is also important to remember those brave warriors from the Western Hemisphere. In an age where many have forgotten their Sikh principle in efforts to settle on foreign lands, these Singhs have forsaken wealth, safety and security to fight for the wellbeing of the Khalsa Panth. They are shining examples to us all however very little is publicised about Jhujaru Singhs of the west to date. Here are the few names of the martyred Singhs who left the west to fight for Khalistan, Jathedar Talwinder Singh Babbar, Bhai Harjinder Singh Para, Bhai Mohinder Singh Kooner, Bhai Surinder Singh Ravi, Bhai Davinder Singh Montreal, Bhai Surinder Singh Shinder, Bhai Balbir Singh Khaira, Bhai Bhupinder Singh Kooner, Bhai Harjit Singh Dhillon, Bhai Gurcharan Singh Khalsa, Bhai Hardev Singh Bapu and Bhai Joginder Singh Malhi.

Bhai Mohinder Singh Kooner was born on 3rd June 1956, in the house of Sardar Niranjan Singh and from the womb of Mata Swaran Kaur in Malaysia. Bhai Sahib was only 2 years old when his father passed away in an accident. After this the family of Bhai Sahib moved to Punjab, in the village of Rurki, district Jalandhar. From childhood Bhai Sahib was more interested in sports and films rather than studies. It was at the age of 15 years, (1971) Bhai Sahib went to Germany to work. After 8 years Bhai Sahib returned home with his earnings. Then in 1981, Bhai Sahib moved to Toronto, Canada. In 1984, Bhai Sahib came to England to attend the wedding of his close friend in Wolverhampton. It was here that Bhai Sahib met Bibi Surinder Kaur and on 16th June 1984, they got married in Huddersfield, England. On 17th May 1985, Bibi Surinder Kaur gave birth to their son, Bhujangi Gurpreet Singh.

At the time of their wedding Bhai Sahib and Bibi Surinder Kaur weren’t very much into Sikhi, living in the west made them free from any worries. By now the Indian government had attacked Sri Darbar Sahib and had killed thousands of innocent Sikh pilgrims on the holy complex. But the killing of tens of thousands of Sikhs in the streets of India following the assassination of Indira Gandhi had a deep impact on Bhai Sahib. This was termed as the Sikh Genocide of November 1984. From here on Bhai Sahib became an active member of International Sikh Youth Federation’s local branch, attending meetings and national programs. At this time Bhai Sahib was working as a Foreman/Manager at car part factory in Rexdale (Toronto), Canada. Bhai Sahib had a bad habit of drinking excessive alcohol, but after the Sikh genocide of November 1984 his drinking got even worse. At this point members of ISYF, especially Bhai Balkaran Singh encouraged Bhai Sahib to take the path of Sikhi and take Amrit from the Panj Pyare. Following this, on Vaisakhi Bhai Sahib and Bibi Surinder Kaur took Amrit from Panj Pyare, but the night before taking Amrit, Bhai Sahib drank alcohol all night and decided to dedicate the remainder of his life to the Khalsa Panth.

In 1985, Bhai Sahib went to Pakistan to join the Jhujaru Singhs of Khalistan Liberation Force to be trained in guerrilla warfare. But this was short lived as Bibi Surinder Kaur bought Bhai Sahib back to Canada for the sake of their son. Bhai Sahib went back and forth to Pakistan between the years of 1987-1988, once with Bhai Surinder Singh Ravi. Bhai Sahib’s heart was set on serving the Khalsa panth through the Sikh armed struggle for freedom but the responsibilities of family kept on dragging him back to Canada. Finally in 1989, Bhai Sahib left his family and home to never return again. Bhai Sahib went to Pakistan and gained even more intelligence on the strategies of guerrilla warfare.

On 15th July 1989, Bhai Sahib and another 13 fellow Jhujaru Singh were moving towards the Rajasthan border to cross into India. Three Jhujaru Singhs were ahead of Bhai Sahib and the other 10 were behind him. As these Jhujaru Singhs crossed the border they were spotted by the Indian border security forces (BSF). At this point the singhs were fired upon and Bhai Sahib had been shot. The 10 Jhujaru Singhs behind Bhai Sahib never got the chance to get close to the border. A fierce battle started and Bhai Sahib was shot again and was seriously injured. The fellow Jhujaru Singhs returned fore and managed to get Bhai Sahib away from the border fence. Back on the Pakistan soil, Bhai Sahib attained shaheedi hour and a half after the battle. The Jhujaru Singhs did cremation of Bhai Sahib near the border and returned back to their base in Pakistan.

Bhai Mohinder Singh Kooner was very much into football and Kabbadi, he also liked Bhangra and singing songs but after taking the path of Gurmat he had forgotten all that. With time Bhai Sahib knew his Nitnem by heart and always recited Gurbani to other singhs also. Bhai Sahib had great amount of respect for Jathedar Avtar Singh Brahma as many Sikh youth looked and still do look up to the great warrior of Khalistan. After the martyrdom of Bhai Sahib, his wife and son continued living in Brampton (Toronto), Canada and accepted his martyrdom as the will of god.

Sant Sipahi – July 1993