Giani Harpreet tells Akali Dal to abide by edict on revamp

Former Akal Takht Jathedar and SAD breakaway group president Giani Harpreet Singh on Tuesday asked the party leadership to abide by the temporal seat edict that had asked for the outfit’s reorganisation.

The edict was issued on December 2 last year by five Sikh high priests, including Giani Harpreet, after SAD president Sukhbir Badal and other party leaders were held guilty of religious misconduct over issues concerning Sikhs during the party’s decade-long rule from 2007-17.

The temporal seat had also formed a seven-member panel to undertake a membership drive for the party.

The later part of the SAD regime, which ruled in alliance with the BJP, was marked by incidents of the desecration of religious texts and subsequent police firing on protesters that resulted in the death of two persons in 2015.

Badal was also awarded a 10-day religious punishment for the mistakes, for which he had submitted an unconditional apology through a letter to the Akal Takht.

However, the party rejected the panel, citing legal and constitutionals obligations, while carrying out its own membership drive, leading to the re-election of Badal as the SAD president.

Miffed over it, several rebels parted ways with the Badal group, claiming to be the original Akali Dal and demanding the party reorganisation as per the Akal Takht edict.

A year after the edict was issued, Giani Harpreet expressed resentment against the SAD leadership for “not complying with the edict”.

Talking to media persons after inaugurating his party office in the holy city, Giani Harpreet He said senior leaders should set an example by following the temporal seat directions.

The former Jathedar also inaugurated the faction’s office in the city.