Chandigarh, December 25
Though unity in the Shiromani Akali Dal before the coming Assembly elections looks improbable, yet certain ardent advocates of “Panthic unity” are continuing their efforts to bring the warring leaders together.
In fact the leadership of both the North American unit and the Delhi unit of the Dal, besides a few other hardcore Akalis, has been working hard to bring about unity in the SAD before the elections.
After their initial unsuccessful attempts by both Mr Didar Singh Bains and Yogi Harbhajan Singh, the former wants to make yet another attempt by returning to India on January 11 with a one-point agenda of “Panthic unity”. It is he, supported by Mr Jaswant Singh Mann, secretary, World Sikh Council, who have set in motion the preparations for the “Panthic ekta convention here on January 12 and January 13” where they hope to bring the Sikh leadership on one platform.
Before leaving for the USA, Mr Bains had a meeting with Mr Parkash Singh Badal. Before leaving for New Delhi, Mr Bains had also held a long meeting with the former SGPC chief and the President of the Sarb Hind Shiromani Akali Dal chief, Mr Gurcharan Singh Tohra.
Continuing his efforts for “Panthic unity” overseas, Mr Bains convened a “convention” at Saint Jose in California yesterday where the unanimous view was that Panthic forces must unite to defeat the Congress in the coming Assembly elections.
Mr Bains told Mr Jaswant Singh Mann on the telephone that participants were perturbed over infighting in the party. They felt that family nominees, corrupt and opportunists, with no sacrifices to their credit, were the biggest obstacle in the way of “Panthic unity”.
Mr Mann said preparations were in full swing for the Panthic ekta convention where Panthic activists, intellectuals, technocrats, academicians and others would be invited to raise the voice of unity.
The release of the first list of 43 candidates for the coming Assembly elections by the SAD chief, Mr Parkash Singh Badal, is also being viewed as a positive development as the dal leadership is keeping its doors for negotiations and unity open.
While the response to the NRI Sikh leadership from the SAD and the Sarb Hind Shiromani Akali Dal over the “Panthic unity” has been mild to lukewarm, yet it has not given up hope.
It feels that keeping in view the international scenario in general and the build up along the Indo-Pak border in particular was demanding of the Panthic leadership to close its ranks and put up a united front not only in national interest but also in the interest of the state.
Because of the developments in the South Asian subcontinent over the past few months and the trauma the Sikh NRIs had undergone after the September 11 terrorist attacks on the USA, the NRI Sikh leadership feels the world is watching developments in Punjab. Only a united Panth could be the answer, it adds.
