‘Pushing anti-Sikh ideology of his Delhi boss’ — SGPC rejects Mann’s gurbani broadcast bill

Chandigarh: The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) Monday unanimously rejected a proposed regulation that enables a number of channels to relay the gurbani from Amritsar’s Golden Temple — a transfer that would doubtlessly escalate its ongoing standoff with the Punjab authorities. 

Calling the Punjab authorities’s modification to the Sikh Gurdwaras Act of 1925 “anti-Sikh”, the SGPC’s normal home, which met on the Teja Singh Samundri Corridor of the Golden Temple — the very best Sikh shrine — handed a decision in opposition to it and likewise promised to start a protest if the Punjab authorities didn’t revoke it. 

The decision additionally demanded a public apology from Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann.

The event comes every week after the state meeting handed the Sikh Gurdwaras (Modification) Invoice, 2023, which permits a number of channels to relay the gurbani from the Golden Temple, ending the follow of giving a single channel such rights. The invoice is at the moment pending approval from Punjab Governor Banwarilal Purohit. 

Known as the Parliament of Sikhs, the SGPC is a physique created below the 1925 Act and has members elected by Sikhs throughout Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, and Chandigarh each 5 years. It’s chargeable for managing gurdwaras in Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, and Chandigarh.

Whereas the day-to-day working of the physique is carried out by its government committee, a particular normal home of all of the elected members is usually known as to debate vital points, such because the modification.

Though a decision of SGPC’s normal home just isn’t binding, it might act as a severe supply of religious-moral stress on the state’s dispensation.

The SGPC additionally held that Mann’s Aam Aadmi Get together (AAP) authorities was “clearly” interfering within the spiritual affairs of the Sikhs. 

“Based on a pact of 1959 between the then Prime Minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru and the then SGPC president Grasp Tara Singh, any modification to the Sikh Gurdwaras Act of 1925 can solely be caused after a decision is handed by two-third members of the SGPC,” SGPC president Harjinder Singh Dhami mentioned on the normal home assembly which was streamed reside on its official YouTube channel.

He added: “However Mann interfering in Punjab’s spiritual affairs with the intention of implementing the anti-Sikh ideology of his Delhi-based boss and AAP chief Shri Arvind Kejriwal and to usurp the Sikh organisation SGPC”.

Mann responded to the event by calling the SGPC president the “chief spokesperson” of Sukhbir Badal’s Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD). In his tweet in Punjabi, he additionally requested if any dialogue was held on the assembly, or whether or not it was merely geared toward “abusing” him. 

ਸ਼੍ਰੋਮਣੀ ਅਕਾਲੀ ਦਲ ਬਾਦਲ ਦੇ “ਮੁੱਖ ਬੁਲਾਰੇ” ਸ੍ਰੀ ਹਰਜਿੰਦਰ ਸਿੰਘ ਧਾਮੀ ਜੀ ਅੱਜ ਦੇ ਇਜਲਾਸ ਵਿੱਚ ਪਵਿੱਤਰ ਗੁਰਬਾਣੀ ਦੇ ਸਭ ਨੂੰ ਮੁਫਤ ਪ੍ਰਸਾਰਣ ਬਾਰੇ ਕੋਈ ਵਿਚਾਰ ਵਟਾਂਦਰਾ ਹੋਇਆ ਜਾਂ ਫਿਰ ਮੈਨੂੰ ਗਾਲਾਂ ਕੱਢਣ ਦਾ ਮਤਾ ਪਾਸ ਕਰਕੇ ਇਜਲਾਸ ਖਤਮ??..ਧਾਮੀ ਸਾਹਬ ਲੋਕ ਸਭ ਦੇਖ ਰਹੇ ਨੇ..ਕਬੂਤਰ ਦੇ ਅੱਖਾਂ ਮੀਚਣ ਨਾਲ ਬਿੱਲੀ ਨਹੀਂ ਭੱਜਦੀ…

— Bhagwant Mann (@BhagwantMann) June 26, 2023

Handed within the Punjab meeting on 20 June, the modification to the British-era Sikh Gurdwaras Act 1925 sought to permit a number of radio, tv and social media channels to relay gurbani. At present, broadcast rights are with the PTC, a channel owned by SAD president and former deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal. 

The federal government’s resolution to get the invoice handed within the Punjab meeting — the place Mann’s AAP has 92 legislators within the 117-member home — has additionally led to an escalating standoff with the SGPC, which claims that the Home had no jurisdiction over the Sikh Gurdwaras Act of 1925.

The modification was additionally handed in defiance of the jathedar of the Akal Takht — the very best temporal seat of the Sikhs. The jathedar had requested the Mann authorities to desist from any transfer that could possibly be seen as an try to dilute the authority of the SGPC.

Monday’s assembly additionally comes a day after Dhami’s go to to the SAD workplace in Chandigarh. 

Reacting to the Sunday go to, Mann claimed that the SGPC president had already “taken directions” from SAD and that Monday’s normal assembly was a “farce”.

ਪੰਜਾਬੀਓ ਹੁਣ ਫ਼ੈਸਲਾ ਤੁਸੀਂ ਕਰੋ..ਸ਼੍ਰੋਮਣੀ ਗੁਰਦਵਾਰਾ ਪ੍ਰਬੰਧਕ ਕਮੇਟੀ ਦੀ ਘਰ ਦੀ ਮੀਟਿੰਗ ਅਕਾਲੀ ਦਲ ਦੇ ਦਫ਼ਤਰ ਚ..?? ਇਹਦਾ ਕੀ ਮਤਲਬ ਐ ??? ਵਿਚਾਰ ਜਰੂਰ ਦਿਓ..ਇਹ ਸੰਗਤ ਦੇ ਫ਼ਤਵੇ ਤੋਂ ਭੱਜ ਨਹੀ ਸਕਦੇ..ਮੈਂ ਇਹ ਫ਼ੈਸਲਾ ਤੁਹਾਡੇ ਤੇ ਛੱਡਦਾ ਹਾਂ…ਇਹਨਾਂ ਦੇ ਚਿਹਰੇ ਬੇਨਕਾਬ ਕਰੀਏ.. pic.twitter.com/xYtVTeL8r2

— Bhagwant Mann (@BhagwantMann) June 25, 2023

This prompted the SGPC chief to reply asking Mann why he used state cash to fly a “helicopter to Delhi day by day”. He was referring to allegations that Mann took orders from Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal for day-to-day working of the state.  

.@BhagwantMann ਮੈਨੂੰ ਇਸ ਗੱਲ ਦਾ ਮਾਣ ਹੈ ਕਿ ਮੈਂ ਜੁਝਾਰੂ ਜਥੇਬੰਦੀ ਸ਼੍ਰੋਮਣੀ ਅਕਾਲੀ ਦਲ ਦਾ ਸਿਪਾਹੀ ਹਾਂ।ਤੁਸੀਂ ਐਨਾਂ ਡਰੇ ਹੋ ਕਿ ਤੁਹਾਨੂੰ ਪੰਜਾਬ ਦੇ ਵਿਕਾਸ ਦੀ ਥਾਂ ਪੰਥ ਦੇ ਸਿਪਾਹੀ ਦਾ ਫਿਕਰ ਜਿਆਦਾ ਹੈ।ਪਰ ਮੈਂ ਤੁਹਾਨੂੰ ਇਹ ਨਹੀਂ ਪੁੱਛਾਂਗਾ ਕਿ ਤੁਸੀਂ ਪੰਜਾਬੀਆਂ ਦੇ ਪੈਸੇ ‘ਤੇ ਉੱਡਦੇ ਹੈਲੀਕਾਪਟਰ ‘ਤੇ ਦਿੱਲੀ ਨੂੰ ਕਿਉਂ ਜਾਂਦੇ ਹੋ।

— Harjinder Singh Dhami (@SGPCPresident) June 25, 2023

Additionally Learn: Punjab meeting passes regulation changing governor with CM as chancellor of state universities

‘Mann not a whole Sikh’

Addressing the media after the overall home assembly, SGPC president Dhami mentioned that one member of the SGPC and SAD’s Amritsar in-charge will lead a protest jatha — or a march — from the Akal Takht every day till the modification is withdrawn. 

He additionally mentioned {that a} delegation from SGPC will meet Union House Minister Amit Shah and even President Droupadi Murmu over the problem. 

Main the overall home proceedings Tuesday, Dhami accused Mann and his authorities of getting scant regard for the Sikh faith, its rules and practices, even claiming that the CM was “not a whole Sikh” for not utilizing the surname “Singh”.

In its decision, SGPC demanded a public apology from Mann for interfering in gurdwara administration, insulting Kes (unshorn hair) an vital a part of Sikh Kakar (5 Ok’s ordained for the Khalsa) and hurting the dignity of Raagi Singhs (singers of hymns) of the Golden Temple.

The decision got here after audio system on the meeting steered “panthic” motion in opposition to the chief minister for allegedly mocking the beard each male Sikh is anticipated to sport as ordained by the tenth Sikh Guru, Guru Gobind Singh.   

Throughout his speech within the Punjab meeting, Mann allegedly made derogatory references to the tying and untying of the beard by “some” leaders. Though he took no names, it was speculated that he was referring to SAD’s Sukhbir Badal, who has been identified to maintain his each tied or free at completely different public appearances.

Some members additionally sought motion in opposition to Mann for his allegations that kirtans (singing of the sacred hymns) within the Golden Temple had been generally paused to pay their respect to the Badal household.

In the meantime, even whereas supporting the decision, Bibi Jagir Kaur, a former cupboard minister and ex-president of SGPC who had damaged ranks from the SAD final yr, criticised the get together management for “weakening” panthic establishments, saying that this had “emboldened” governments to intrude of their working. 

Though she tried to maneuver a decision to finish every kind of political inference on the SGPC she was stopped from doing so on the bottom that, based on the SGPC’s guidelines of process, solely the president might transfer a decision.  

In the meantime, different members who spoke after Kaur criticised her for having turned in opposition to a celebration which had honoured her with excessive positions — together with an opportunity to “serve” as a cupboard minister. 

(Edited by Uttara Ramaswamy)

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