Parents: Sukhvinder Singh (Sukhey) s/o Late Sukhdarshan Singh and Amarjeet Kaur (Rani) d/o Late Kartar Singh
Passed away peacefully on 24th November 2025
Leaving behind brother and spouse Sukhjit Singh / Tanishah Kaur
Nieces: Gazleen Kaur and Jaishika Kaur
Relatives, loved ones and family
LAST RITES Tuesday, 25 November Cortege leaves from residence: No 28, Jalan Meru Mutiara 2, Taman Meru Mutiara 30020, Ipoh, Perak Saskar at Wadda Gurdwara Sahib Ipoh at 2pm
(Revised Programme Details)
AKHAND PATH of Mata Harbhajan Kaur d/o Bawa Singh and Mandev Singh s/o Sukhvinder Singh arambtha (starts) at 9am on Friday, 28 November 2025 Gurdwara Sahib Menglembu Ipoh
PATH DA BHOG & ANTIM ARDAAS Sunday, 30 November Gurdwara Sahib Menglembu Ipoh
ASIA SAMACHAR is an online newspaper for Sikhs / Punjabis in Southeast Asia and beyond. You can leave your comments at our website, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. We will delete comments we deem offensive or potentially libelous. You can reach us via WhatsApp +6017-335-1399 or email: asia.samachar@gmail.com. For obituary announcements, click here
Dharmendra (1935 – 2025). Right: His acting in blockbuster Sholay
By Asia Samachar | India |
Veteran Bollywood actor Dharmendra, celebrated for decades as Hindi cinema’s “He-Man”, died on Monday in Mumbai aged 89, marking the end of one of India’s most enduring film careers.
According to family sources and Indian media, the actor had been unwell for about a month before his death at his residence.
Born Dharmendra Kewal Krishan Deol on December 8, 1935, in the village of Nasrali in Ludhiana district, he grew up in a Panjabi Jat Sikh family, the son of a school headmaster and a homemaker.
His journey from rural Punjab to the heart of Bombay’s film industry began after he won a national talent contest run by Filmfare magazine, propelling a young farmer’s son onto India’s biggest screens.
Over a career spanning more than six decades and 300 films, Dharmendra became one of Bollywood’s most recognisable faces, moving with ease between romance, comedy and high-voltage action.
Roles in films such as Mera Gaon Mera Desh and the landmark 1975 blockbuster Sholay cemented his reputation as a muscular yet emotionally accessible leading man, a blend that earned him the “He-Man” title and a huge fan following across northern India, particularly among Punjabi audiences who saw in him a reflection of their own roots.
Sholay hit the theatres in 1975 to become one of Indian cinema’s greatest cult classics.
Dharmendra also served as a member of parliament for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) from 2004 to 2009 and received the Padma Bhushan, India’s third-highest civilian award, for his contribution to cinema.
He is survived by his first wife Prakash Kaur, his second wife, actor Hema Malini, and six children, including actors Sunny Deol and Bobby Deol.
Tributes poured in from political leaders, fans and film personalities, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi calling him an “iconic film personality” and colleagues hailing not just his star power but his warmth and generosity.
For many, especially in Punjab, Dharmendra’s death closes a chapter in which a village boy from the fields became one of Indian cinema’s defining legends.
ASIA SAMACHAR is an online newspaper for Sikhs / Punjabis in Southeast Asia and beyond. You can leave your comments at our website, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. We will delete comments we deem offensive or potentially libelous. You can reach us via WhatsApp +6017-335-1399 or email: asia.samachar@gmail.com. For obituary announcements, click here
LAST RITES Monday, Nov 24, 2025 3pm: Sukhmani Sahib at residence (No. 39, Jalan Intan 1/5, Taman Intan, 86000, Kluang, Johor) 5pm: Saskar (cremation) at Hong Yuan Hills, Kg. MIC, Sri Lalang, Kluang, Johor
PATH DA BHOG Saturday, 29th Nov 2025 From 9am to 12pm Gurdwara Sahib Kluang
| Entry: 24 Nov 2025; Updated: 27 Nov 2025 | Source: Family
ASIA SAMACHAR is an online newspaper for Sikhs / Punjabis in Southeast Asia and beyond. You can leave your comments at our website, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. We will delete comments we deem offensive or potentially libelous. You can reach us via WhatsApp +6017-335-1399 or email: asia.samachar@gmail.com. For obituary announcements, click here
Age 85 years old passed away peacefully on 23 November 2025
Though our heart aches, we take comfort in knowing that she is now at peace. Her kindness, love and unwavering spirit will forever live in our memories.
Wife of Late Jeswant Singh (formerly from Kuala Terengganu) s/o Late Sgt Major Dalbara Singh Madhe)
Children / Spouse: Sarjit Kaur (Advocate & Solicitor; Former Insolvency Officer) Jasvinder Singh / Daljit Kaur (Melbourne) Late Harbinder Kaur (Teacher Convent Klang) / Sukdarshan Singh (Retired Sub Insp. Bukit Aman) Dr. Harshinderjeet Singh (Min. of Health, Putrajaya) / Harvin Kaur
Sadly missed and always remembered by beloved children, grandchildren, great grandchildren and a host of relatives and friends.
Cortege leaves residence No. 145, Jalan Limau Manis, Bukit Bandaraya, Bangsar, KL at 11am on Tuesday, 25th November 2025 for cremation at Shamshaan Bhoomi, Jalan Loke Yew Crematorium at 12pm.
Path Da Bhog will be held at Gurdwara Sahib Tatt Khalsa Diwan on Sunday, 7th December 2025 from 9.30 am till 11.30 am. Guru Ka Langgar will be served.
KINDLY ACCEPT THIS AS A PERSONAL FAMILY INVITATION
ASIA SAMACHAR is an online newspaper for Sikhs / Punjabis in Southeast Asia and beyond. You can leave your comments at our website, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. We will delete comments we deem offensive or potentially libelous. You can reach us via WhatsApp +6017-335-1399 or email: asia.samachar@gmail.com. For obituary announcements, click here
Gurdwara Sis Ganj Sahib in Delhi – Where a Fearless Stand in 1675 Reshaped the Conscience of a Continent! – Photo: Harmeet Shah Singh / Asia Samachar
SYNOPSIS: Guru Tegh Bahadar Sahib, the ninth Sikh Guru, accepted martyrdom in 1675 to defend freedom of belief for others. His life of service, equality and spiritual leadership uplifted communities across Indian sub-continent. His sacrifice challenged Mughal oppression, inspired the Khalsa’s formation, and endures today as a universal stand against coercion and injustice.
By Harmeet Shah Singh | Opinion |
Exactly 350 years ago, a sword fell in Delhi.
The holy head beneath it was fifty-four.
It belonged to Guru Tegh Bahadar Sahib, the ninth of the ten Gurus who shaped a spiritual, moral and civilisational force that transformed the subcontinent from 1469 to 1708. Their work grew far beyond the scale of a movement. It altered how ordinary people understood power, spirituality and dignity.
Guru Tegh Bahadar Sahib embraced martyrdom so that people who did not follow him could keep their faith.
Born in 1621 in Punjab’s Amritsar, he grew up in a household where sacred manuscripts and weapons rested on the same floor.
His father, Guru Hargobind Sahib, had confronted Mughal armies more than once, so the young Tegh Bahadar learned both horse and hymn.
He spent many years in Bakala, a quiet village in Punjab. His life there moved between active meditation and long journeys through towns and cities.
When Guru Harkrishan Sahib left this world in Delhi, his last words were “Baba Bakala.”
Many impostors stepped forward, each hoping the ambiguity would hand them spiritual authority. A sea trader tested them with two gold coins. Only one figure reminded him of the five hundred he had promised earlier. Truth surfaced through a cry from a rooftop that still rings in Sikh memory.
Guru Tegh Bahadar Sahib founded a new township, Anandpur, on the Himalayan foothills.
From there he walked thousands of miles across eastern India.
Congregations rose in Patna, Dhaka and the hills of Assam. Wherever he stopped, men and women sat on the same ground. Caste lines in those remote regions dissolved. Wells appeared in dry villages. Landless farmers received cattle. Entire communities shifted from resignation to self-respect.
Aurangzeb watched with rising hostility. His Mughal empire revived the tax on non-Muslims, banned Hindu festivals, and ordered temple demolitions.
In Kashmir, the royal governor gave scholars a choice between conversion and death. Thousands faced annihilation while local kings remained silent.
In the summer of 1675, a group of Kashmiri Pandits reached Anandpur. They bowed before the Guru and asked for protection. Their tradition was different from his. The bond he felt made no distinction.
His nine-year-old son asked who could stop such cruelty. The father answered that the moment called for a supreme sacrifice. The son said the world had no one greater than him.
Guru Tegh Bahadar Sahib left for Delhi. He knew the road ended at the execution ground.
Imperial troops arrested him. They offered three choices: perform a miracle, accept Islam or die. He chose death.
In November 1675, in the heart of Chandni Chowk, the executioner brought the sword down. A storm swept across the Walled City that evening. One Sikh carried the severed head to Anandpur through the night. Another set fire to his own home in Delhi so that the Guru’s body could be cremated in secret.
That martyrdom altered the course of the subcontinent. It gave communities the resolve to defend every tradition under threat.
Twenty-four years later, his son laid the foundations of the Khalsa, which broke the machinery of Mughal coercion for good.
Guru Tegh Bahadar Sahib’s call still stirs the soul: Fear no one; frighten no one.
In 2025, those words speak to a world where apostasy is still punished with death, where shrines are attacked and where enforced sameness remains a political tool.
Guru Tegh Bahadar Sahib never asked anyone to become Sikh. His life stands for something wider.
On this 350th anniversary, his story is not Sikh history. It is human history.
Guru Tegh Bahadar Sahib showed that shielding the conscience of strangers is the strongest way to protect one’s own. His stand covered believers and non-believers alike, because the freedom he upheld rested on choice, not identity.
Three and a half centuries later, his example remains a measure against which injustice is recognised. It strengthens those who face pressure to surrender their convictions and helps communities name coercion for what it is.
The struggle continues, and Guru Tegh Bahadar Sahib’s resolve continues to guide it.
Harmeet Shah Singh is a career journalist currently serving as Communications and Advocacy Director at UNITED SIKHS (UK), a charity registered in England and Wales.
* This is the opinion of the writer and does not necessarily represent the views of Asia Samachar.
ASIA SAMACHAR is an online newspaper for Sikhs / Punjabis in Southeast Asia and beyond. You can leave your comments at our website, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. We will delete comments we deem offensive or potentially libelous. You can reach us via WhatsApp +6017-335-1399 or email: asia.samachar@gmail.com. For obituary announcements, click here
Grandchildren, great grandchildren, relatives and friends
LAST RITES Monday, 24 November 2025 1.30pm: Cortege leaves residence: No 51, Laluan Buntong Jaya 17, RPT Buntong 3, 30100 Ipoh 2.00pm: Saskar (cremation) at Wadda Gurdwara Sahib Ipoh
AKHAND PATH & PATH DA BHOG Sri Akhand Path arambtha 9am on Friday, 28th November at Wadda Gurdwara Sahib Ipoh with Path da Bhog and Antim Ardaas on Sunday, 30th November 2025
ASIA SAMACHAR is an online newspaper for Sikhs / Punjabis in Southeast Asia and beyond. You can leave your comments at our website, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. We will delete comments we deem offensive or potentially libelous. You can reach us via WhatsApp +6017-335-1399 or email: asia.samachar@gmail.com. For obituary announcements, click here
With heavy hearts, we announce the passing of our beloved husband and father, Charanjit Singh s/o Late Chanan Singh, who departed on 23rd November 2025 leaving behind:
Wife: Jaswinder Kaur d/o Kernail Singh
Son: Pargatjit Singh
And also sister, brother, brothers-in-law, sisters-in-law, nieces, nephews, nephew in law, grand nephew and grand nieces
The loss of a father is one of the most painful experiences anyone can go through. He was my first source of support, wisdom and love for the family. His comforting words, caring hands and unconditional love have left an everlasting imprint in our lives. You will be dearly missed, but your spirit will continue to inspire and guide us forever.
He will be lovingly remembered for his kindness, wisdom and unwavering devotion to our family forever. Though he has left this earthly home too soon, his legacy of love and strength will always remain in our hearts.
LAST RITES Monday, 24th November 2025 9.00am – 10.30 am: Last Respects and Prayers at Residence: No. 5, Jalan 2/1, Taman Desa Kenanga 2, Semenyih. Click here for location. 11.00 am: Cortege leaves residence for DBKL Crematorium, Jalan Kuari, Cheras, Kuala Lumpur 12.00 noon: Saskar
PATH DA BHOG & ANTIM ARDAAS Sunday, 7th December 2025 From 10am – 12 noon Gurdwara Sahib Kajang
ASIA SAMACHAR is an online newspaper for Sikhs / Punjabis in Southeast Asia and beyond. You can leave your comments at our website, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. We will delete comments we deem offensive or potentially libelous. You can reach us via WhatsApp +6017-335-1399 or email: asia.samachar@gmail.com. For obituary announcements, click here
Veena Praveenar Singh anointed First Runner-Up at Miss Universe 2025
By Asia Samachar | Thailand |
Fresh from capturing the pageant crown in Thailand two months ago, Veena Praveenar Singh emerged as the First Runner-Up at Miss Universe 2025.
The 29-year-old beauty queen is Thai with Indian heritage went to the final lap, with Fátima Bosch from Mexico taking the main crown.
She stands 178 centimetres tall and graduated from Thammasat University with a degree in Russian from the Faculty of Liberal Arts. She is fluent in three languages: English, Russian and Thai.
Veena was born in Chiang Mai and later moved to Yala to live with her aunt when she was in Prathom 5, following the death of her father. Her mother has since remarried and now lives in Canada.
She subsequently adopted his surname. This year marks the first time the Miss Universe Thailand pageant has allowed married women to compete, enabling Veena to return to the stage. Representing Phuket, she made a triumphant comeback and secured the Miss Universe Thailand 2025 crown.
ASIA SAMACHAR is an online newspaper for Sikhs / Punjabis in Southeast Asia and beyond. You can leave your comments at our website, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. We will delete comments we deem offensive or potentially libelous. You can reach us via WhatsApp +6017-335-1399 or email: asia.samachar@gmail.com. For obituary announcements, click here
International arbitration specialist Dinesh Singh Dhillon has been elected as the President of the Law Society of Singapore for 2026.
Dinesh, a partner at leading Singapore law firm Allen & Gledhill, succeeds Lisa Sam Hui Min, who has served as president since 2024.
Joining him on the council are Prof Tan Cheng Han and Daniel Koh Choon Guan as vice presidents, while Peggy Sarah Yee May Kuen will serve as treasurer.
A seasoned practitioner, Dinesh is the co-head of Allen & Gledhill’s International Arbitration Practice, and is dual-qualified in both Singapore and the United Kingdom. According to the firm’s website, his practice spans international arbitration and litigation, and he has represented multinational corporations before the Singapore International Commercial Court (SICC), the High Court, and the Court of Appeal.
His work covers a wide range of matters, including banking, corporate, employment, entertainment, insurance, property and shareholder disputes.
Dinesh was called to the Singapore Bar in 1995. In 2004, he obtained the Graduate Certificate in International Arbitration from the National University of Singapore, strengthening his expertise in cross-border dispute resolution.
Beyond his legal practice, Dinesh contributes actively to the broader profession and community. He currently serves as Chairman of Pro Bono SG, Co-Chair of the Asia Pacific Regional Forum of the International Bar Association, Immediate Past President of the Singapore Institute of Arbitrators, and Co-Chair of the Legal & IPR Committee of the American Chamber of Commerce in Singapore (AmCham).
His election to lead the Law Society, established in 1967, reflects his strong standing in the legal community and his sustained commitment to advancing professional standards, access to justice and international legal cooperation.
ASIA SAMACHAR is an online newspaper for Sikhs / Punjabis in Southeast Asia and beyond. You can leave your comments at our website, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. We will delete comments we deem offensive or potentially libelous. You can reach us via WhatsApp +6017-335-1399 or email: asia.samachar@gmail.com. For obituary announcements, click here
RMAF’s Corporal Jaspreet Kaur served in Camp Marakah, Lebanon, under UNIFIL – Photo: Supplied
By Asia Samachar | Malaysia |
Corporal Jaspreet Kaur is one formidable woman. The Ipoh-born Sikh airwoman has just completed a year-long deployment with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), a peacekeeping mission tasked with monitoring the Blue Line, the sensitive technical border separating Lebanon and Israel.
During her deployment, Jaspreet served at Camp Marakah, Lebanon, where she was involved in a variety of peacekeeping duties. These included conducting security patrols, manning checkpoints and roadblocks, monitoring the Blue Line and supporting local communities affected by decades of conflict.
For her service, she was awarded the UN Medal after her first six months. She is now set to receive a second medal in recognition of completing the full year-long mission. The medal presentation will take place in Port Dickson on Dec 4.
“It wasn’t just a mission — it was a journey that changed me,” Jaspreet shared on her social media. “May the people of Lebanon always be safe and protected.”
Malaysia’s involvement in UNIFIL is part of its long-standing commitment to global peacekeeping. Malaysian troops serve not as combatants but as peacekeepers, working to protect civilians and uphold the ceasefire agreement in the region.
RMAF’s Corporal Jaspreet Kaur served in Camp Marakah, Lebanon, under UNIFIL – Photo: Supplied
Jaspreet’s father, Pritam Singh Mejor Singh, originally from Penang, passed away in 2013. Her mother, Amarjeet Kaur Boota Singh, hails from Batu Gajah. Born and raised in Bandar Baru Siputeh, Ipoh, Jaspreet is the youngest of three siblings.
A former student of SMK St. Bernadette’s Convent in Batu Gajah, she enlisted in the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) after completing Form Five. Following six months of basic military training at the RMAF Academy in Ipoh, she was posted to the Air Traffic Control School, where she now serves as an Air Traffic Controller Assistant (ATCA).
Corporal Jaspreet’s accomplishments stand as a testament to her courage, discipline and dedication to serving both Malaysia and the global community.
ASIA SAMACHAR is an online newspaper for Sikhs / Punjabis in Southeast Asia and beyond. You can leave your comments at our website, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. We will delete comments we deem offensive or potentially libelous. You can reach us via WhatsApp +6017-335-1399 or email: asia.samachar@gmail.com. For obituary announcements, click here
