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The solitary khanda in Arlington National Cemetery
Sargent Uday Singh was the first Sikh-American soldier whose sacrifice was honoured by a memorial at the Arlington National Cemetery in Washington D.C.
Most Sikhs have never seen the grave-marker of a Sikh soldier, as we usually cremate our dead and scatter the ashes in a body of water.
Arlington National Cemetary in Virginia is a US military cemetery for deceased veterans of the nation's conflicts beginning with the American Civil War. It is also the final resting spot for notable Americans such as President John F Kennedy, and civil rights activist Medgar Evars.
It is considered the highest military honour for a soldier to be buried at Arlington.
The cemetery is a time machine of America's military past, with graves of Civil War soldiers all the way up to soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Uday Singh's grave is the only one with a khanda on it, the emblem of the Sikh religion.
Arlington apparently has very strict guidelines about what religious symbols are allowed on grave stones and initially the military bureaucracy did not recognize the Sikh khanda as an authorized religious symbol.
Uday Singh's family and friends had to struggle with the authorities for nearly six months after his funeral before the military finally recognized the legitimacy of the Sikh khanda and added it to Uday's gravestone.
During that process Uday's family requested a letter from the SGPC in Amritsar to explain the khanda was a religious emblem of the Sikhs. When the family did not receive a reply, the local gurdwara stepped in to supply the letter to the military.
Uday Singh’s ashes lie in Section 60, Gravesite No 8122 - where soldiers from the Iraq and Afghanistan wars are buried.
He was the 44th soldier to be honoured in Arlington that had been killed in Iraq.
Uday Singh was born in Jaipur, India on 23rd April 1982. In 1994 he enrolled in St Stephen's School Chandigarh.
In 1997 his parents emigrated to the US and he joined them in 2000 – the same year he enrolled for the US Army. He was assigned to Charlie Company 1st Battalion, 34 Armor Regiment, based at Fort Riley, Kansas, USA.
From August 2001 to December 2001 Uday served with his battalion in Kuwait where he was awarded with the first of the two Army Achievement Medals for meritorious service.
Uday's unit was deployed to Iraq in September 2003.
On December 1, 2003 Uday was in the lead Humvee of his platoon as a gunner while out on reconnaissance in Habbaniyah, when the platoon came under fire. Uday was the first to fire back and kept the insurgents pinned down till such time reinforcements could arrive. However, in the continuing firefight he was hit with a gunshot to his head, and could not survive and died on the way to the hospital.
This action had led to the capture of a number of a terrorists and a large weapons cache. Uday was awarded with the Bronze Star and Purple Heart for his bravery and ultimate sacrifice. These awards were made by Lieutenant General James Campbell, Commander Pacific Command, at Chandigarh India at the Memorial Service and Military Honors by the US Army on 11 December 2003.
Story composed with notes from Sandeep Singh Brar (www.sikhchic.com).
Photo credit: Sandeep Singh Brar
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