Siva Singh Benalla: Research and Recognition
A response to NRI Affairs on the book’s sources and the research behind Benalla’s public commemorations.
Len Kenna 31 October 2026
Siva Singh Benalla: Research and Recognition
A response to NRI Affairs on the book’s sources and the research behind Benalla’s public commemorations.
NRI Affairs (https://www.nriaffairs.com/siva-singh-benalla-sikh-history/) has published an article on its website and Facebook page discussing Siva Singh Benalla, by Len Kenna and Crystal Jordan. Published by the Australian Indian Historical Society Inc., the book was launched on 18 October 2026. It includes extensive footnotes documenting the sources on which its research is based.
Released on 18 October 2026, Siva Singh Benalla presents research that should be considered alongside existing online accounts. A detailed assessment of the book would benefit from direct engagement with its contents and supporting references, rather than reliance solely on online material arising from Kenna and Jordan’s research into Siva Singh and other Indians in the Benalla district. AI-generated material is likewise no substitute for examining the book and checking its sources.
The Howship photograph
The article refers to William Howship’s photograph taken at the Reef Hills property near Benalla. 16 December 1920. Kenna and Jordan have extensively researched this photograph and identified the event’s location as Siva Singh’s property. The photograph is held in the University of Melbourne Archives as part of a collection of 1,250 glass plate negatives originally held by the Benalla Family Research Group (BFRG). The collection is now the subject of a collaboration between the University and the BFRG.
Recognising the memorial’s origins
The article also refers to the Siva Singh Memorial but does not acknowledge the efforts of Kenna, Jordan and the Australian Indian Historical Society Inc. in researching the event on Siva Singh's property, who the event was for and bringing the memorial to fruition. Recognition of this contribution would provide readers with a fuller account of its establishment.
Research behind Bush Diwan
The article further mentions the Benalla Art Gallery exhibition Bush Diwan. In developing the exhibition, one of its curators interviewed Len Kenna, Crystal Jordan and Manmohan Singh Shergill at the Siva Singh Memorial in Benalla about Siva Singh and the research undertaken into his life. This background is relevant to an understanding of the exhibition’s development.
Earlier published research
Finally, the article cites an 1895 newspaper report concerning Mett Singh. Kenna and Jordan had previously researched this report and published their findings in Are Indians an Ethnic Minority?, Volumes 2–5, in 2013. Acknowledging this earlier publication would help clarify the research history of the material cited.
Many hawkers had copies of a Gutka and some who officiated at cremations had a Sunda Gutka Sahib which was often mistaken for the Sri Guru Granth Sahib by Australians. Len and Crystal have a copy of a Sundar Gutka Sahib that was owned by Nuttah Singh who lived at Mildura, he officiated at cremations in the same manner as Mett Singh, it is possible that this is what the journalist may have mistaken as a Sri Guru Granth Sahib as there wasn't any photographic evidence of the ceremony in 1899.
Cremation at Sandringham: https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/149934017?searchTerm=mett%20singh
A Hindoo Bible 1899:
Are Indians An Ethnic Minority? Volumes
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