Akal Takht Jathedar calls meeting of Sikh clergy on January 28
Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Raghbir Singh has called a meeting of the five Sikh high priests on January 28 amid allegations that the Shiromani Akali Dal has defied the temporal seat by rejecting the panel constituted by it for the party’s membership drive.
Though Akal Takht Secretariat officials did not share the agenda of the meeting, they said it has been called to discuss “some Panthic issues”.
The development has come three days after the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) initiated its month-long membership drive, a prelude to the organisational polls to be held on March 1.
The Jathedar has not commented over the drive till now, despite on an earlier occasion asking the party to follow the December 2 edict pronounced by the Sikh clergy “in toto”.
The issue had snowballed into a major controversy after SAD rejected the Takht-constituted seven-member panel, saying it could not take orders from a religious body as it might lead to the party’s de-recognition.
In its decree, the temporal seat had ordered the party to accept Badal’s resignation from its chief’s post and initiate a six-month membership drive to restructure SAD.
Though the SAD working committee accepted Sukhbir’s resignation with delay and reluctance on January 10, it rejected the Takht-constituted seven-member panel led by Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) chief Harjinder Singh Dhami.
‘Will follow Akal Takht’
Meanwhile, rebel Akali leader Gurpartap Singh Wadala rejected overtures by SAD to involve him in the ongoing membership drive, saying the party should run the programme under the Akal Takht-formed panel.
His comment came after SAD approached two of the seven members of the panel. Besides Wadala, SAD approached Satwant Kaur but the party said she should resign from the post of the Deputy Director of a college run by the SGPC.
Satwant Kaur has not reacted to the offer. She could not be contacted.
However, Wadala told The Tribune that the SAD leadership “may continue to defy the orders of the Akal Takht but he will abide by it”.
“The membership drive and subsequent elections of the party office-bearers should be conducted only under the seven-member panel formed by the Akal Takht,” Wadala said.
Earlier, SAD leaders Manpreet Singh Ayali and Santa Singh Umaidpur had refused to accept the duties assigned by the party to them. They were appointed to carry out the drive in Rajasthan and Himachal Pradesh. Both leaders were part of the Takht-formed panel. SAD has not approached them afresh.
Satwant Kaur wished to serve party: Cheema
SAD spokesperson Daljit Singh Cheema said Satwant Kaur “wished to serve the party and she was most welcome to join it”.
“She belongs to one of the most respected religious families of Punjab and her presence in the party will be a matter of honour for us. However, since she is an employee of the SGPC and drawing salary from the apex religious body, she should resign from her post before joining a political party as per the rules,” he said.
Meanwhile, a SAD delegation led by working president Balwinder Singh Bhunder, former president Sukhbir Singh Badal and SGPC president Dhami today met Gurdwara Election Commissioner Justice SS Saron (retd), and requested him to extend the process for registration of voters for the SGPC poll to March 31 besides weeding out all “bogus votes”.
