{"id":4299,"date":"2026-02-17T15:19:05","date_gmt":"2026-02-17T22:19:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/?p=4299"},"modified":"2026-04-22T13:30:46","modified_gmt":"2026-04-22T20:30:46","slug":"senate-passes-bill-recognizing-diwali-bandi-chhor-divas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/2026\/02\/17\/senate-passes-bill-recognizing-diwali-bandi-chhor-divas\/","title":{"rendered":"Senate passes bill recognizing Diwali,\u00a0Bandi Chhor Divas\u00a0\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"

OLYMPIA \u2013 Legislation recognizing Diwali and Bandi Chhor Divas as non-legal holidays in Washington state passed the Washington State Senate on Tuesday.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cRecognizing these important holidays\u00a0is about\u00a0belonging,\u201d said Sen. Manka Dhingra (D-Redmond), the\u00a0prime sponsor\u00a0of Senate Bill 6044<\/a>. \u201cThis bill is about\u00a0acknowledging our state\u2019s religious and cultural diversity and making sure\u00a0our Indian American\u00a0community\u00a0feels\u00a0seen,\u00a0respected, and celebrated.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Known as the \u201cFestival of Lights,\u201d Diwali is celebrated by\u00a0<\/span>more than a billion people around the globe<\/span><\/a>, including Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, and Jains. The holiday marks the victory of light over darkness and good over evil, symbolized by the lighting of lamps and the renewal of faith and prosperity. Sikhs\u00a0observe\u00a0the same day as Bandi Chhor Divas,\u00a0which\u00a0commemorates liberation, reflecting values of courage, justice, and selfless leadership. Together, these observances highlight shared themes of renewal, compassion, and unity.\u00a0The celebrations\u00a0fall on the new moon day of the Hindu lunisolar month of Kartik, typically\u00a0occurring\u00a0between October and November each year.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

“I’m proud to be from a state that is home to people from different cultures, communities, and faiths,\u201d said Sen. Vandana Slatter (D-Bellevue),\u00a0co-sponsor of the bill.\u00a0\u201cGrowing up, I\u00a0never saw Diwali recognized on school calendars\u2014not because it\u00a0wasn\u2019t\u00a0considered meaningful, but because our institutions\u00a0hadn\u2019t\u00a0yet reflected the Indian Americans who call this state home. Today, we helped change that. This bill\u00a0doesn\u2019t\u00a0just add a holiday to the calendar. It recognizes Indian Americans and their traditions as part of our shared civic life.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Washington state recognizes other cultural and religious observances, including Lunar New Year,\u00a0and\u00a0<\/span>most recently, the Islamic holidays of Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha<\/span><\/a>. These days of recognition are not paid holidays, but employees may use personal paid time off to\u00a0observe\u00a0them.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Remarks from the\u00a0Senate floor can be\u00a0viewed and downloaded\u00a0<\/span>here<\/span><\/a>.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Follow\u00a0the bill\u2019s\u00a0progress\u00a0<\/span>here<\/span><\/a>.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"

The Sikh Coalition visited the Washington State Capitol on Tuesday, Feb. 10 to advocate for SB 6044 and other legislative priorities. Photo credit: Washington State Legislative Support Services (or Washington State LSS)<\/em><\/p><\/div>\n

###<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

OLYMPIA \u2013 Legislation recognizing Diwali and Bandi Chhor Divas as non-legal holidays in Washington state passed the Washington State Senate on Tuesday.\u00a0 \u201cRecognizing these important holidays\u00a0is about\u00a0belonging,\u201d said Sen. Manka Dhingra (D-Redmond), the\u00a0prime sponsor\u00a0of Senate Bill 6044. \u201cThis bill is about\u00a0acknowledging our state\u2019s religious and cultural diversity and making sure\u00a0our Indian American\u00a0community\u00a0feels\u00a0seen,\u00a0respected, and celebrated.\u201d\u00a0 Known as the \u201cFestival of Lights,\u201d Diwali is celebrated by\u00a0more than a billion people around the globe, including Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, and Jains. The holiday marks the victory of light over darkness and good over evil, symbolized by the lighting of lamps and the renewal of…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":53,"featured_media":4355,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"disable_featured_image":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4299","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news-release"],"yoast_head":"\nSenate passes bill recognizing Diwali,\u00a0Bandi Chhor Divas\u00a0\u00a0 - Sen. Manka Dhingra<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/2026\/02\/17\/senate-passes-bill-recognizing-diwali-bandi-chhor-divas\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Senate passes bill recognizing Diwali,\u00a0Bandi Chhor Divas\u00a0\u00a0 - Sen. Manka Dhingra\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"OLYMPIA \u2013 Legislation recognizing Diwali and Bandi Chhor Divas as non-legal holidays in Washington state passed the Washington State Senate on Tuesday.\u00a0 \u201cRecognizing these important holidays\u00a0is about\u00a0belonging,\u201d said Sen. Manka Dhingra (D-Redmond), the\u00a0prime sponsor\u00a0of Senate Bill 6044. \u201cThis bill is about\u00a0acknowledging our state\u2019s religious and cultural diversity and making sure\u00a0our Indian American\u00a0community\u00a0feels\u00a0seen,\u00a0respected, and celebrated.\u201d\u00a0 Known as the \u201cFestival of Lights,\u201d Diwali is celebrated by\u00a0more than a billion people around the globe, including Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, and Jains. The holiday marks the victory of light over darkness and good over evil, symbolized by the lighting of lamps and the renewal of...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/2026\/02\/17\/senate-passes-bill-recognizing-diwali-bandi-chhor-divas\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Sen. Manka Dhingra\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-02-17T22:19:05+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-04-22T20:30:46+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2026\/04\/20260126_130600ab-scaled.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2560\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1707\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"akerndl\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"akerndl\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/2026\/02\/17\/senate-passes-bill-recognizing-diwali-bandi-chhor-divas\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/2026\/02\/17\/senate-passes-bill-recognizing-diwali-bandi-chhor-divas\/\",\"name\":\"Senate passes bill recognizing Diwali,\u00a0Bandi Chhor Divas\u00a0\u00a0 - Sen. Manka Dhingra\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/2026\/02\/17\/senate-passes-bill-recognizing-diwali-bandi-chhor-divas\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/2026\/02\/17\/senate-passes-bill-recognizing-diwali-bandi-chhor-divas\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2026\/04\/20260126_130600ab-scaled.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-02-17T22:19:05+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-22T20:30:46+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/#\/schema\/person\/466fea2688143dc3442d00ee9ca25027\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/2026\/02\/17\/senate-passes-bill-recognizing-diwali-bandi-chhor-divas\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/2026\/02\/17\/senate-passes-bill-recognizing-diwali-bandi-chhor-divas\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/2026\/02\/17\/senate-passes-bill-recognizing-diwali-bandi-chhor-divas\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2026\/04\/20260126_130600ab-scaled.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2026\/04\/20260126_130600ab-scaled.jpg\",\"width\":2560,\"height\":1707,\"caption\":\"India Republic Day - January 26, 2026\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/2026\/02\/17\/senate-passes-bill-recognizing-diwali-bandi-chhor-divas\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Senate passes bill recognizing Diwali,\u00a0Bandi Chhor Divas\u00a0\u00a0\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/\",\"name\":\"Sen. Manka Dhingra\",\"description\":\"Putting People First\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/#\/schema\/person\/466fea2688143dc3442d00ee9ca25027\",\"name\":\"akerndl\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1a87c07be6a8f50662b24d2cdf185f3a1a3dac53483017856fdbe224261e2eed?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1a87c07be6a8f50662b24d2cdf185f3a1a3dac53483017856fdbe224261e2eed?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"akerndl\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/author\/akerndl\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Senate passes bill recognizing Diwali,\u00a0Bandi Chhor Divas\u00a0\u00a0 - Sen. Manka Dhingra","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/2026\/02\/17\/senate-passes-bill-recognizing-diwali-bandi-chhor-divas\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Senate passes bill recognizing Diwali,\u00a0Bandi Chhor Divas\u00a0\u00a0 - Sen. Manka Dhingra","og_description":"OLYMPIA \u2013 Legislation recognizing Diwali and Bandi Chhor Divas as non-legal holidays in Washington state passed the Washington State Senate on Tuesday.\u00a0 \u201cRecognizing these important holidays\u00a0is about\u00a0belonging,\u201d said Sen. Manka Dhingra (D-Redmond), the\u00a0prime sponsor\u00a0of Senate Bill 6044. \u201cThis bill is about\u00a0acknowledging our state\u2019s religious and cultural diversity and making sure\u00a0our Indian American\u00a0community\u00a0feels\u00a0seen,\u00a0respected, and celebrated.\u201d\u00a0 Known as the \u201cFestival of Lights,\u201d Diwali is celebrated by\u00a0more than a billion people around the globe, including Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, and Jains. The holiday marks the victory of light over darkness and good over evil, symbolized by the lighting of lamps and the renewal of...","og_url":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/2026\/02\/17\/senate-passes-bill-recognizing-diwali-bandi-chhor-divas\/","og_site_name":"Sen. Manka Dhingra","article_published_time":"2026-02-17T22:19:05+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-04-22T20:30:46+00:00","og_image":[{"width":2560,"height":1707,"url":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2026\/04\/20260126_130600ab-scaled.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"akerndl","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"akerndl","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/2026\/02\/17\/senate-passes-bill-recognizing-diwali-bandi-chhor-divas\/","url":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/2026\/02\/17\/senate-passes-bill-recognizing-diwali-bandi-chhor-divas\/","name":"Senate passes bill recognizing Diwali,\u00a0Bandi Chhor Divas\u00a0\u00a0 - Sen. Manka Dhingra","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/2026\/02\/17\/senate-passes-bill-recognizing-diwali-bandi-chhor-divas\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/2026\/02\/17\/senate-passes-bill-recognizing-diwali-bandi-chhor-divas\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2026\/04\/20260126_130600ab-scaled.jpg","datePublished":"2026-02-17T22:19:05+00:00","dateModified":"2026-04-22T20:30:46+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/#\/schema\/person\/466fea2688143dc3442d00ee9ca25027"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/2026\/02\/17\/senate-passes-bill-recognizing-diwali-bandi-chhor-divas\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/2026\/02\/17\/senate-passes-bill-recognizing-diwali-bandi-chhor-divas\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/2026\/02\/17\/senate-passes-bill-recognizing-diwali-bandi-chhor-divas\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2026\/04\/20260126_130600ab-scaled.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2026\/04\/20260126_130600ab-scaled.jpg","width":2560,"height":1707,"caption":"India Republic Day - January 26, 2026"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/2026\/02\/17\/senate-passes-bill-recognizing-diwali-bandi-chhor-divas\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Senate passes bill recognizing Diwali,\u00a0Bandi Chhor Divas\u00a0\u00a0"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/#website","url":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/","name":"Sen. Manka Dhingra","description":"Putting People First","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/#\/schema\/person\/466fea2688143dc3442d00ee9ca25027","name":"akerndl","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1a87c07be6a8f50662b24d2cdf185f3a1a3dac53483017856fdbe224261e2eed?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1a87c07be6a8f50662b24d2cdf185f3a1a3dac53483017856fdbe224261e2eed?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"akerndl"},"url":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/author\/akerndl\/"}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2026\/04\/20260126_130600ab-scaled.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4299","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/53"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4299"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4299\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4305,"href":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4299\/revisions\/4305"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4355"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4299"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4299"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4299"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}