Must turn SAD into party of farmers, says Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Harpreet Singh

Anandpur Sahib, March 9

Akal Takht’s officiating Jathedar Giani Harpreet Singh has called upon people to bring farmers and labourers at the forefront in Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD).

On the concluding day of Hola Mohalla yesterday, the Jathedar said attempts were being made to weaken the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), “Parliament” of Sikhs, and false information was being spread through social media to portray the Sikhs in a bad light.

Without naming any individual, the Jathedar said, “SAD was never a party of capitalists. It was a party of farmers and labourers. To face the current challenges, it is necessary to turn it into a party of farmers.”

Raising the issue of formation of the Haryana Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (HSGPC), he said attempts had been made to weaken the Sikh institutes in the past few decades and formation of the HSGPC was one such move. “The SGPC is a ‘Parliament’ of the Sikhs. It’s similar to Parliament in Delhi and any attempt to destroy its sovereignty will not be tolerated,” he said. The Jathedar said unruly behaviour of Punjabi devotees at Manikaran in Himachal Pradesh and murder of a youngster during Hola Mohalla in Anandpur Sahib dented the image of the Sikhs.