Dissident Akali Dal leaders again meet Jathedar, seek fresh directions to party to comply with Akal Takht orders

Dissident Akali Dal leaders on Thursday approached Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Raghbir Singh, seeking directions to the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) to maintain the sanctity of the seven-member committee constituted by Akal Takht to revive the party.

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Gurpartap Singh Wadala and Santa Singh Umaidpuri, the two members of the Akal Takht-formed committee, met the Jathedar showing their resentment against the SAD leadership for non-compliance with the Akal Takht directions.

Wadala said that the Jathedar had declared that only the seven-member committee had been entrusted with the responsibility of revamping the party.

“Despite clear instructions by the Jathedar that only the seven-member committee constituted by Akal Takht ‘stands’ and that the directions would have to be abided by in toto, the SAD overlooked it. This compelled us to meet the Jathedar saheb who specifically told us that only the Akal Takht committee has been authorised to chalk out and oversee the SAD membership drive,” he said.

On the orders of the Jathedar, they also submitted a letter addressed to Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) president Harjinder Singh Dhami requesting to hold the meeting of the committee that was headed by him.

On December 2, while pronouncing ‘tankhah’ to former SAD president Sukhbir Badal and other "guilty" Akali leaders, the Jathedar had announced from the ‘faseel’ of Akal Takht the seven-member panel headed by Dhami, while directing to oversee the proceedings as per the party's constitution for presidential election, reorganise the party structure, appointment of fresh delegates in addition to the existing ones and members within a span of six months.

The other members of the committee included former SGPC chief Kirpal Singh Badhungar, Iqbal Singh Jhunda, Gurpartap Singh Wadala, Manpreet Singh Ayali, Santa Singh Umaidpuri and Satwant Kaur.

The SAD went on with its plans to form a parallel panel consisting of over 25 members to oversee the membership drive for a month starting from January 25.

The fate of this seven-member committee hung in balance, after the SAD working committee picked up the five from the Akal Takht committee but excluded the two — Gurpartap Singh Wadala, who was expelled by the SAD, and Satwant Kaur, an SGPC employee.

Ironically, the two members —sitting SAD MLA (Dakha) Ayali and Umaidpuri — refused to acknowledge the new organisational set up of the SAD saying that they would go only by the directions of Akal Takht. Ayali was deputed to oversee the membership drive in Rajasthan whereas Umaidpuri was to perform the same task in Himachal Pradesh.

The SAD had claimed that recasting the party through the seven-member committee might lead to cancellation of its recognition from the Election Commission of India (ECI) as the Representation of the People Act, 1951, mandates for running a political party in a secular manner, and not as per the directions of a religious body.