Yet again, Langah pleads Akal Takht for pardon
GS Paul
Tribune News Service
Amritsar, June 25
Former Akali minister Sucha Singh Langah appeared before the Akal Takht on Friday and performed ‘ardas’ seeking atonement for his past “mistakes”.
He atoned his “jane/anjaane hoian bhulan (deliberate or inadvertent follies)”.
“I committed a blunder for which I am ready to face any religious punishment decided by Akal Takht and Sangat. I am broken both mentally and physically,” he said.
Langah was excommunicated by the Akal Takht on October 5, 2017, after a video allegedly showing him in a compromising position with a woman, went viral. The woman had accused him of sexually exploiting her. However, he was later acquitted by the court as the complainant withdrew the charges.
Akal Takht’s officiating Jathedar Giani Harpreet Singh made it clear that the Akal Takht’s verdict stands to date.
“His case could be discussed with the Five High Priests before deciding upon his pleas. He is excommunicated and no one was supposed to have any association with him”, he said.
Sources say that the former SAD MLA from Dera Baba Nanak intends to re-join mainstream politics, ahead of the 2022 Assembly polls.
Citing Buta Singh’s instance, Langah said that being a ‘Nimana Sikh’, he was liable to be pardoned.
Referring to his octogenarian parents and children, who also approached the Akal Takht submitting ‘apology’ letters on his behalf, Langah said, “For the sake of my family, my application should be considered by the Akal Takht Jathedar who could never be put under any political influence. Socially, my elder parents and children who are of marriageable age, suffered mental harassment. I am free from all charges legally and hope that Akal Takht will take a sympathetic view and accept me back”, he said.
Langah claimed that for the past 72 days, he had been attending Golden Temple prayers seeking an apology for his mistakes and returned without approaching anyone.
Earlier, in violation of Akal Takht’s directions, Langah had managed to partake ‘amrit sanchar’ from ‘panj pyaras’ during a programme held at Gurdwara Garhi Baba Banda Singh Bahadur in Dhariwal, Gurdaspur on August 3, 2020.
Ironically, he was pronounced the tankhah (religious punishment) to perform Sewa at the gurdwara for 21 days, which he did before undergoing initiation of ‘amrit sanchar’ ceremony after the ‘panj pyaras’ exonerated him of all charges he faced. This development had created an uproar and those who helped him in this endeavour were penalised by the Akal Takht.
Langah was booked for rape, cheating, ransom and criminal conspiracy on the statement of a woman on September 29, 2017, just prior to the Gurdaspur parliamentary bypoll. Later, the woman complainant withdrew her statements claiming that she was not the woman in the purported video and all her statements produced in court were either fake or taken under pressure.
