Akal Takht Jathedar meets HP delegation, calls for calm
Officiating Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Kuldeep Singh Gargaj on Sunday appealed to people to maintain harmony and brotherhood amid a row triggered by the removal of flags bearing the image of slain militant Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale from bikes of a group of Punjab youths in Himachal Pradesh.
He also called for the direct intervention of Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu into the matter, urging him to direct his state police to uphold law and order.
His appeal came after a group of 20 students and teachers met him at the Golden Temple. The group has been on a three-day tour of Punjab and reached Amritsar today.
They told Jathedar Gargaj that when they were about to leave for Punjab, they were discouraged by their relatives not to undertake the journey in view of deteriorating law and order situation.
Jathedar Gargaj assured them that they were completely safe in Punjab.
Citing the opening verse of the Guru Granth Sahib, he said Punjab is a land of Gurus and the Sikh philosophy preaches the well-being of all humanity.
“Even in our prayer we recite ‘nirbhau nirvair’ (without fear and without hate), so our principles command us to strive for global peace. Visitors needn’t fear in Punjab,” he said.
Jathedar Gargaj said the controversy had erupted as some Himachal residents removed the flags from vehicles of the Punjab tourists in the “presence of the police”. “The administration should ensure that Himachal residents don’t misbehave with the visiting Punjabis, especially those on pilgrimage to shrines in the neighbouring state,” he said. A professor accompanying the group offered to donate land for the construction of a gurdwara.
Meanwhile, Amritsar Police Commissioner Gurpreet Singh Bhullar claimed to have vital clues about the incident involving vandalising of five buses of Himachal Road Transport Corporation. The buses were allegedly damaged by Khalistan sympathisers at the Amrtisar bus stop on Friday night. “We expect a positive outcome,” he said.
