Capt tells Channi, Randhawa to attend SGPC meeting tomorrow

Tribune News Service
Amritsar, October 2

Amid face-off between the SGPC and the state government over joint celebrations of 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev, Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh has asked Cabinet Ministers Charanjit Singh Channi and Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa to attend the coordination committee meeting scheduled for October 4 at SGPC headquarters here.

Both the ministers were designated by the CM to finalise a joint programme rising “above the party lines”. After skipping the panel meet twice, Randhawa and district (rural) Congress president Bhagwant Pal Singh Sachar (Channi was abroad then) represented the state government in the last meeting held on September 17 in Amritsar, but failed to reach any conclusion.

On the other hand, SGPC president Gobind Singh Longowal said an intimation of October 4 meeting was sent to the CM on September 27, but there had been no communication till date. “We have no inkling as to who else will be there from the government’s side. But the meeting will be held as scheduled,” he said.

CM’s media adviser Raveen Thukral said Channi and Randhawa had been conveyed by the CM to attend the meeting.

While Randhawa could not be contacted despite repeated attempts, Channi said the outcome of the meeting could be conclusive only if the SGPC stopped taking directions from its “political bosses”.

“I will attend the meeting, if the CM wants. But the sanctity of the meeting could be there only if the SGPC comes on negotiation table keeping aside the political interests of the Akalis,” he said.

For the main event on November 12, he claimed that with mutual consent, it was decided that the SGPC would hold the programmes inside Gurdwara Ber Sahib, whereas the government would hold programmes outside the gurdwara. “Later, the SGPC backed out and insisted to hold the event separately at another venue. We have already spent Rs 52 crore to erect tents and allied arrangements for over 35,000 persons. Similarly, overlooking the government representatives, the SGPC took along SAD president Sukhbir Badal and Union Minister Harsimrat Badal for extending invitation to the PM and the President. These politically motivated moves played a spoilsport,” he said.

The SGPC has hired Guru Nanak Stadium at Sultanpur Lodhi, whereas the government has already set up a huge ‘pandal’ for the occasion behind historic Gurdwara Ber Sahib.

Longowal said, “Ethically, the main event should be conducted by the SGPC that represents the whole Sikh community.” On invitation row, he said the state government too had been extending invitations on their own.