Bathinda: A scholarship winner and a key figure behind a US state’s decision to incorporate Sikhism into its social studies curriculum, 20-year-old Gurikpreet Singh died when his father’s licensed firearm allegedly misfired at the time he was cleaning it at his native village in Barnala on Tuesday.Gurikpreet, a resident of Ganda Singh Wala village in Mehal Kalan block, was studying at Pennsylvania State University on the prestigious Penn State Provost Award, a scholarship worth $100,000 over two years. He was home on his summer break and was scheduled to return to the US on Aug 6. The bullet struck him in the temple.His father, Gurpreet Singh, said his son had been cheerful throughout the day. “He picked up my licensed weapon to clean it. It accidentally went off and he died on the spot,” he said.Gurikpreet played a key role in the passage of New Jersey Senate Resolution 108 (SR 108) in Dec 2023, which introduced Sikhism into the state’s social studies curriculum. He addressed lawmakers at the New Jersey State House during the campaign for the resolution.The family moved to Canada in 2014 before settling in Burlington, New Jersey, in 2016. Gurikpreet completed school there in 2024 and initially joined Rutgers University before moving to Pennsylvania State University. He had also been serving as an intern in the office of New Jersey governor Mikie Sherrill, gaining experience in public policy and community relations.Influenced by his father and grandfather, Gurikpreet became actively involved in promoting Sikh teachings from the age of 16, delivering talks at gurdwaras across the US.
