Haryana gurdwara Sikh panel meet postponed amid quorum row

The General House meeting of the Haryana Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (HSGMC), scheduled for today, was postponed at the last moment as several members failed to turn up, triggering sharp exchanges between the committee president and dissenting members.

As anticipated following a boycott call by dissenting members, completion of the quorum emerged as the main hurdle for the HSGMC president.

While HSGMC president Jagdish Singh Jhinda said the meeting was deferred due to the absence of a few members for personal reasons, dissenting members insisted that it was postponed as the quorum could not be met.

“The General House meeting was scheduled for today, but a member from Sirsa and the general secretary couldn’t attend the meeting due to some family issues, following which the it has been postponed to February 18,” Jhinda said.

He added that several matters related to the executive body and the budget were pending. “Different works related to the executive body and the budget were lying pending. The committee had passed its budget last month, but some members had challenged the legality of the budget and approached the judicial commission. We have produced our records before the commission and the next date of hearing is February 13,” the president said.

Hitting out at the dissenters, Jhinda said, “On the one hand, they accuse me of not being able to do any work for the betterment of the gurdwaras, on the other hand they create hurdles in ensuring the smooth operations by challenging the budget and meetings. They can’t be trusted and they have the tendency of creating troubles for their vested interests.”

He said several development projects were stalled due to restrictions on spending. “The committee had planned to buy a land in Amritsar to build a Serai, expand gurdwaras, schools and healthcare services in Haryana, and various other development works, but due to the restriction on the spending of budget, all the projects are lying pending,” he added.

Countering the president’s claims, HSGMC senior vice-president Gurmeet Singh said the quorum was not met as expected. “As expected, the quorum was not met and the president announced to postpone the meeting. We will request the Haryana Sikh Gurdwara Judicial Commission to suspend the president as he lacks the members’ support and he hasn’t been able to hold any meeting of the General House and executive body in which the quorum was complete,” he said.

Explaining the quorum requirement, Gurmeet Singh said, “In the house of 49 members, the president needs the support of two-thirds majority (33 members) to complete the quorum.”

He also criticised the president for seeking changes in the law. “We also condemn the president for sending a letter to the Chief Minister demanding an amendment in the Gurdwara Act to remove the requirement of two-thirds majority in the meetings. A number of members are unhappy with the demand being raised as it will lower the value of the members and give a free hand to the president and his supporters,” he added.

Co-opted member Baljit Singh Daduwal alleged that the meeting had been convened with ulterior motives. “The objective behind the meeting was to remove some members from the executive body, who have been opposing the president in his wrongdoings, but the meeting was failed. The meeting was postponed after the scheduled time, when the meeting was supposed to begin, which shows that the members have no faith left in the president,” he said.