Membership row: Will cooperate with probe panel, says CKD

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, December 18

Amid a controversy over ‘non-baptised’ members being included in the century-old Chief Khalsa Diwan (CKD), its management took a U-turn within 48 hours of showing its inability to submit credentials of its members to the Akal Takht.

Akal Takht officiating Jathedar Giani Harpreet Singh said CKD president Nirmal Singh had paid a visit to him today and agreed to cooperate with the panel constituted to probe the authenticity of CKD members.

The panel members include SGPC member Kiranjot Kaur, former additional secretary of SGPC Balwinder Singh Jaurasingha, Amarjit Singh of GNDU and Manjit Kaur, principal of Sikh Missionary College, as its coordinator. They had asked the CKD to submit the details of the members and requisite documentation for perusal by December 16.

In reply, the CKD management wrote a letter addressed to Manjit Kaur showing its inability to submit the details as the record was to be submitted for another court case on an identical issue.

Now, the CKD president has promised to cooperate with the panel. Balwinder Singh Jaursingha said the panel had scheduled its meeting tomorrow.

As per the CKD constitution, a ‘patit’ or ‘non-amritdhari’ or an aspirant who does not partake of ‘amrit’ as per Sikh tenets, cannot become its member.

After receiving complaints about defying this clause, Giani Harpreet Singh had put a blanket ban on the induction of fresh members and summoned the CKD management along with the record pertaining to members of the CKD. However, even after lapse of several months, the CKD management failed to abide by it.