Giani Harpreet Singh takes swipe at SAD leaders over AAP MLAs' appearance at Takht
Referring to the controversy following the Akal Takht's directives issued on December 2, 2024, Giani Harpreet Singh said he was thankful that AAP did not have legal advisers like SAD leaders
Reacting to the appearance of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLAs before the Akal Takht on Monday over the Jagat Jyot Sri Guru Granth Sahib Satkar (Amendment) Act, 2026, Giani Harpreet Singh, president of the breakaway Shiromani Akali Dal (Punar Surjeet) and former Jathedar of the Akal Takht, criticised leaders of the Shiromani Akali Dal for their contradictory stand on the authority of the Akal Takht.
Giani Harpreet Singh referred to the controversy following the Akal Takht's directives issued on December 2, 2024, when Shiromani Akali Dal president Sukhbir Badal was summoned over his alleged religious misconduct during his 2007-2017 rule. He said that he was thankful that AAP did not have legal advisers like SAD leaders who had earlier argued that political parties could not comply with certain Akal Takht directives because of constitutional and Election Commission provisions.
He said had leaders such as Daljit Singh Cheema, Maheshinder Singh Grewal and Parmjeet Singh Sarna been advising AAP, they would have claimed that the party's MLAs could not appear before the Akal Takht as it could allegedly invite constitutional complications or even affect the party's recognition. He said they would have questioned how the Akal Takht could direct an elected government to repeal or amend a law.
Taking a further dig at the SAD leadership, Giani Harpreet Singh sarcastically advised AAP to induct leaders such as Daljit Cheema, Meshi Grewal and Sarna into the party, saying their legal expertise would prove useful in such situations.
Senior Shiromani Akali Dal leaders Daljit Singh Cheema, Maheshinder Singh Grewal and Parmjeet Singh Sarna are considered confidants of party president Sukhbir Singh Badal and advise him during tough times. Cheema is regarded as the party's key legal strategist, while Grewal is known as a loyalist of the late former Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal. Sarna is widely seen as an experienced troubleshooter in political matters.
On December 2, 2024, the then Jathedar of the Akal Takht, Giani Raghbir Singh, constituted a seven-member committee and directed the Shiromani Akali Dal to initiate the party's membership drive. In response, Cheema had argued that allowing an independent committee constituted on the Akal Takht's directions to conduct the membership drive would violate the Indian Constitution and the Election Commission's rules.
On January 8, 2025, Daljit Singh Cheema, Parmjeet Singh Sarna and other SAD leaders met Giani Raghbir Singh and reiterated that an independent committee could not legally conduct the party's recruitment or membership drive.
In a separate press conference, Cheema also claimed that the proposal for an independent membership committee was part of a conspiracy to have the Shiromani Akali Dal's official recognition cancelled.
However, member of committee constituted by Akal Takht Gurpartap Singh Wadala and others, including former Jathedar at Damdama Sahib Giani Harpreet Singh, had rejected these claims, describing them as baseless and merely an excuse by the Shiromani Akali Dal to avoid the membership drive.
