Councillor selected to take on honour as baton-bearer
A city councillor who worked tirelessly to create a city's historic Saragarhi Monument has been announced as one of the community baton-bearers for the Birmingham 2022 Queen’s Baton Relay.
Councillor Bhupinder Gakhal, cabinet member for city assets and housing at Wolverhampton Council and ward member for Wednesfield South, was nominated for his work in the city.
He will join other community baton-bearers from Wolverhampton including Parmi Dheensa, her son Callum, and Melvin Riley who were nominated for their activist work.
Councillor Gakhal’s nomination focussed on his work on the city’s Saragahri Monument, the first statute of its kind in the UK to commemorate the bravery of 19th century Sikh soldiers.
He worked closely with Wednesfield’s Guru Nanak Gurdwara to commission the monument, created by Black Country sculptor Luke Perry.
The statue, a bronze figure of a Sikh solider, stands on land in Well Lane, Wednesfield, close to the Gurdwara.
The nomination for Councillor Gakhal highlights how the statue has helped to unite different communities, backgrounds and religions, forming better communication and understanding between communities and helping those living in Wolverhampton to feel special.
Councillor Gakhal said: “I’m absolutely ecstatic. It’s such an honour to be selected as one of the Queen’s baton-bearers for Wolverhampton.
“I’m so honoured and privileged to be given this opportunity. I just want to thank the person, or persons who have nominated me.
“The Commonwealth Games will not only showcase Birmingham, but Wolverhampton as well. And I want to thank everyone from the bottom of my heart for this opportunity.”
The Birmingham 2022 Queen’s Baton Relay will be coming to Wolverhampton this summer during its final journey through England before the Commonwealth Games.
The Queen’s Baton will be parachuted in by helicopter on Sunday, July 24, before baton-bearers take it on a tour of the city, giving them the chance to highlight stories of how they are striving for change in their community.
The relay will begin at 8am in East Park with a parachute drop by The Wings Parachute Team. It will then be taken on a road relay tour of the city stopping off at a number of key locations including WV Active Aldersley before finishing with celebrations in Queen Square.
