Sikhs belonging to the so-called low castes don't have it easy. When a rights initiative, Abroo, studied the caste phenomenon in Punjab some years ago, they stumbled upon shocking cases of systemic segregation in gurudwaras. Dalit Sikhs were given ‘amrit’ (as part of the Khalsa baptism ceremony) from a separate utensil, they were derogatorily referred to as chauthey paurey wale (people from the fourth step) and prohibited from serving langar (free lunch) because “they look dirty”.

It’s more subtle in other cases. Nazir Singh, a Dalit Sikh villager near Ludhiana, told Swarajya that his ilk, even if allowed in langar halls, have chapatis “dropped” in their plates instead of served hospitably. “If we join a group of men discussing important matters in the gurudwara, everybody goes silent,” he said.

Such discrimination has led Dalit Sikhs to set up their own shrines all across Punjab. They worship like they do in any other gurudwara, observe all traditional Sikh rituals, and celebrate all the major Sikh festivals. But each caste group tends to make donations in their own shrines.

This is not only a matter of embarrassment for the clergy, as it reduces the vision of a caste-less Sikh society to mere rhetoric; it is also, as admitted by religious authorities, worrisome, as it leaves the discriminated vulnerable to proselyting religions. When 40 'low-caste' Sikhs converted to Christianity in Tarn Taran district in 2012, it rang alarm bells in the community.

Efforts are now afoot to demolish these caste walls in Sikh places of worship. The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), the single-largest representative body of Sikhs in the world that manages gurudwaras in Punjab, began a campaign in February. Called “One village, one gurudwara”, it wants to merge multiple caste gurudwaras in every village into one centralised gurudwara.

“It’s a first of its kind initiative,” said Harjinder Singh Jhaku, a Dalit leader from Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD). “It’s a tragedy that Sikhs today have adopted what Guru Nanak fought against (casteism). It’s a shame that we have given religious sanction to caste gurudwaras.”