HSGMC poll: Leaders fail to reach consensus on unanimous selection
As the Haryana Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (HSGMC) elections approach, Sikh community leaders have ramped up their preparations.
With the filing of nominations underway, a meeting was held in Kurukshetra to explore the possibility of selecting members for all 40 wards unanimously instead of holding elections. The meeting, attended by community and religious leaders, including HSGMC (ad hoc) president Bhupinder Singh Assandh, failed to reach a consensus.
Not feasible
While the saints preferred unanimous selection, many community leaders were dissatisfied as several aspirants had already filed their nominations. Given this situation, unanimous selection is no longer feasible. — Didar Singh Nalvi, sikh samaj sanstha president
Shiromani Akali Dal (Azad) president Baljit Singh Daduwal said, “The election of the HSGMC is scheduled for January 19, but some saints and community leaders had suggested that the committee members be selected unanimously across all 40 wards. We held a meeting on December 19 and assured the saints that we would not announce candidates or start election campaigning until December 24. However, after today’s meeting, several group heads did not participate, and the saints allowed the interested groups to file nominations. We will announce our candidates soon.”
Sikh Samaj Sanstha president Didar Singh Nalvi, who also attended the meeting, said, “While the saints preferred unanimous selection, many community leaders were dissatisfied as several aspirants had already filed their nominations. Given this situation, unanimous selection is no longer feasible. However, we will hold another meeting on December 26 and regardless of the outcome, our candidates will file their nominations. So far, we have finalised 29 candidates and are contesting solo in this election.”
In a separate development, the Haryana Sikh Panthak Dal and Panthak Dal Jhinda Group held a meeting in Karnal.
Baldev Singh Kaimpur, president of Haryana Sikh Panthak Dal, said, “We are holding discussions with like-minded groups to form an alliance. We have received positive responses from other groups preparing for the election in Haryana. Another meeting will be held soon to decide the next steps. Our goal is to ensure capable members are entrusted with the responsibility of managing the gurdwaras.”
Meanwhile, former HSGMC (ad hoc) chief and Panthak Dal Jhinda Group president Jagdish Singh Jhinda said, “We have started finalising our candidates. Since we oppose the government-nominated committee members, we will not align with the group led by Baljit Singh Daduwal. We are meeting with like-minded groups and soon we will announce our candidates, who will then begin filing their nominations.”
