News Analysis India

Tag: Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee

  • SAD’s Harjinder Dhami becomes SGPC chief again

    By PTI

    AMRITSAR: Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) candidate Harjinder Singh Dhami was elected as the president of the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) on Wednesday as he defeated Bibi Jagir Kaur in the poll for the top post of the apex gurdwara body.

    Dhami polled 104 votes while Kaur secured 42 votes of the SGPC members in a keenly watched contest for the post of president of Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC).

    The general house of the SGPC assembled at Teja Singh Samundri hall to elect its president and other office bearers including the general secretary, senior vice president and junior vice president.

    Kaur was on Monday expelled by the SAD after she refused to back down from her decision of contesting the SGPC presidential poll.

    The SAD had fielded incumbent Dhami for the post of president of SGPC.

    AMRITSAR: Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) candidate Harjinder Singh Dhami was elected as the president of the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) on Wednesday as he defeated Bibi Jagir Kaur in the poll for the top post of the apex gurdwara body.

    Dhami polled 104 votes while Kaur secured 42 votes of the SGPC members in a keenly watched contest for the post of president of Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC).

    The general house of the SGPC assembled at Teja Singh Samundri hall to elect its president and other office bearers including the general secretary, senior vice president and junior vice president.

    Kaur was on Monday expelled by the SAD after she refused to back down from her decision of contesting the SGPC presidential poll.

    The SAD had fielded incumbent Dhami for the post of president of SGPC.

  • SAD expels Jagir Kaur from party over decision to contest SGPC presidential poll

    By PTI

    CHANDIGARH: The Shiromani Akali Dal on Monday expelled Bibi Jagir Kaur from its primary membership for alleged anti-party activities after she stuck to her stand of contesting the November 9 Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee presidential poll.

    The action came after Jagir Kaur failed to appear before the party’s disciplinary committee, which had asked to explain her decision of contesting the election.

    Kaur, who has held the post of the SGPC chief thrice previously, was adamant on contesting the poll.

    Once considered a Badal family loyalist, Kaur on Sunday rolled out her agenda for the SGPC presidential polls, promising to restore the autonomy of the apex gurdwara body.

    She had been pressing to be the party’s nominee for the SGPC poll.

    Kaur, a former MLA from the Bholath seat, had been the SGPC chief in 1999, 2004 and 2020.

    Addressing the media here on Monday, SAD’s disciplinary committee chairman Sikandar Singh Maluka said the disciplinary action against Kaur was taken after exhausting all other options, including giving the leader an opportunity to present her point of view through a personal hearing.

    “The SAD has always sought to present ‘panthic’ unity by putting forward a single candidate for the post of president of the SGPC after the party president takes the views of all members individually. We fail to understand why Bibi Jagir Kaur wanted to change this and create confusion in the Sikh community as it only helps forces inimical to the ‘panth’,” he said.

    Maluka said the party had given her chances to explain her position but she failed to respond.

    “We are left with no option except to take action against her. The disciplinary committee today decided to expel her from the party. Her primary membership to the party has been cancelled. Her services in the party have ended now. The party has nothing to do with Bibi Jagir Kaur,” he said.

    Maluka said Kaur started preparing to contest the SGPC elections three months ago by approaching SGPC members.

    He said senior SAD leaders Daljit Singh Cheema and Surjit Singh Rakhra had urged her to abide by party discipline.

    “Even SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal apprised her about the viewpoint of SGPC members and counselled her not to insist on contesting the polls,” said Maluka.

    But Kaur remained insistent, Maluka said, adding she started calling up and meeting with members to solicit their support.

    “Things got out of hand when there were complaints from SGPC members that senior BJP leader and Minority Commission Chairman Iqbal Singh Lalpura was ringing up members to solicit support for Bibi Jagir Kaur,” Maluka claimed.

    Last week, Kaur was suspended from the party after she dug her heels in for contesting the election, against the party’s wishes.

    The SAD had earlier issued a two-day ultimatum to Kaur to stop “anti-party” activities, failing which, it said, strict disciplinary action would be taken against her.

    “Following this, two repeated extensions were given to her to explain her viewpoint and today she was given time to explain her case in person,” Maluka said.

    However, instead of doing this, she is questioning the formation of the disciplinary committee, he added.

    Disciplinary committee member Virsa Singh Valtoha released a purported audio clip, claiming that an Amritsar-based BJP leader was telling a SGPC member that he would arrange the latter’s meeting with Lalpura.

    The SAD has already announced incumbent Harjinder Singh Dhami as its candidate for the post of president of the apex gurdwara body.

    The party’s decision to announce its candidate was also a marked departure from the practice of declaring its nominee on the day of the poll.

    The SAD earlier had slammed Lalpura for allegedly seeking support for the candidature of Jagir Kaur for the forthcoming polls while accusing him of trying to break the SGPC.

    CHANDIGARH: The Shiromani Akali Dal on Monday expelled Bibi Jagir Kaur from its primary membership for alleged anti-party activities after she stuck to her stand of contesting the November 9 Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee presidential poll.

    The action came after Jagir Kaur failed to appear before the party’s disciplinary committee, which had asked to explain her decision of contesting the election.

    Kaur, who has held the post of the SGPC chief thrice previously, was adamant on contesting the poll.

    Once considered a Badal family loyalist, Kaur on Sunday rolled out her agenda for the SGPC presidential polls, promising to restore the autonomy of the apex gurdwara body.

    She had been pressing to be the party’s nominee for the SGPC poll.

    Kaur, a former MLA from the Bholath seat, had been the SGPC chief in 1999, 2004 and 2020.

    Addressing the media here on Monday, SAD’s disciplinary committee chairman Sikandar Singh Maluka said the disciplinary action against Kaur was taken after exhausting all other options, including giving the leader an opportunity to present her point of view through a personal hearing.

    “The SAD has always sought to present ‘panthic’ unity by putting forward a single candidate for the post of president of the SGPC after the party president takes the views of all members individually. We fail to understand why Bibi Jagir Kaur wanted to change this and create confusion in the Sikh community as it only helps forces inimical to the ‘panth’,” he said.

    Maluka said the party had given her chances to explain her position but she failed to respond.

    “We are left with no option except to take action against her. The disciplinary committee today decided to expel her from the party. Her primary membership to the party has been cancelled. Her services in the party have ended now. The party has nothing to do with Bibi Jagir Kaur,” he said.

    Maluka said Kaur started preparing to contest the SGPC elections three months ago by approaching SGPC members.

    He said senior SAD leaders Daljit Singh Cheema and Surjit Singh Rakhra had urged her to abide by party discipline.

    “Even SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal apprised her about the viewpoint of SGPC members and counselled her not to insist on contesting the polls,” said Maluka.

    But Kaur remained insistent, Maluka said, adding she started calling up and meeting with members to solicit their support.

    “Things got out of hand when there were complaints from SGPC members that senior BJP leader and Minority Commission Chairman Iqbal Singh Lalpura was ringing up members to solicit support for Bibi Jagir Kaur,” Maluka claimed.

    Last week, Kaur was suspended from the party after she dug her heels in for contesting the election, against the party’s wishes.

    The SAD had earlier issued a two-day ultimatum to Kaur to stop “anti-party” activities, failing which, it said, strict disciplinary action would be taken against her.

    “Following this, two repeated extensions were given to her to explain her viewpoint and today she was given time to explain her case in person,” Maluka said.

    However, instead of doing this, she is questioning the formation of the disciplinary committee, he added.

    Disciplinary committee member Virsa Singh Valtoha released a purported audio clip, claiming that an Amritsar-based BJP leader was telling a SGPC member that he would arrange the latter’s meeting with Lalpura.

    The SAD has already announced incumbent Harjinder Singh Dhami as its candidate for the post of president of the apex gurdwara body.

    The party’s decision to announce its candidate was also a marked departure from the practice of declaring its nominee on the day of the poll.

    The SAD earlier had slammed Lalpura for allegedly seeking support for the candidature of Jagir Kaur for the forthcoming polls while accusing him of trying to break the SGPC.

  • SGPC holds ‘Akhand Path’ to express remorse at alleged sacrilege attempt at Golden Temple

    By PTI

    AMRITSAR: The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) on Sunday began an ‘Akand Path’ (uninterrupted recitation of the holy scripture) to express remorse over the alleged sacrilege attempt at the Golden Temple here.

    SGPC president Harjinder Singh was present at the start of the ‘Akhand Path’ at the Gurdwara Manji Sahib Diwan Hall.

    He said the alleged sacrilege attempt which took place on Saturday evening at the Golden Temple has caused deep mental and spiritual anguish to the entire Sikh community.

    “The governments should expose the conspiracy behind this incident. If such incidents are not stopped, then the governments would be responsible for the deteriorating environment in the state,” Singh said.

    The SGPC president also condemned the attempt to allegedly commit sacrilege at a gurdwara in Kapurthala district.

    An unidentified man was beaten to death in Kapurthala on Sunday after being accused of “disrespecting” the Sikh religious flag at a gurdwara in Nizampur village.

    Meanwhile, Punjab Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu on Sunday condemned the alleged sacrilege attempts at the Golden Temple in Amritsar and at a gurdwara in Kapurthala, saying conspiracies are being hatched to disturb peace in the state.

    He also said “deliberate and malicious acts” intended to outrage religious feelings should be dealt with deterrent punishment.

    “Punjab is built on strong foundation of Oneness & universal brotherhood laid down by Guru Sahib. No divisive forces can destroy strong social fabric of Punjabi Community. Deliberate & malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings should be dealt with deterrent punishment,” Sidhu said in a tweet.

    Earlier, addressing a public meeting in Malerkotla district, he said, “Even today, conspiracies are being hatched to disturb peace in Punjab.”

    The cricketer-turned-politician said those involved in any incident of sacrilege should be awarded the maximum punishment.

    “If any incident of sacrilege takes place — be it of the Quran Sharif, the Bhagavad Gita or the Guru Granth Sahib — the culprits should be publicly hanged, should be given the maximum punishment under the Constitution because such incidents hurt our sentiments.

    “Anyone can make a mistake, but this is not a mistake, this is a conspiracy to weaken and finish the society,” he said.

    Two unidentified men were beaten to death in Amritsar and Kapurthala after they allegedly attempted to commit sacrilege.

  • ‘Highly condemnable and fabricated’: SGPC demands ban on ‘Grahan’ web series on 1984 anti-Sikh riots

    By PTI
    AMRITSAR: Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) president Bibi Jagir Kaur has demanded that ‘Grahan’ web series based on the incidents of the 1984 riots be banned immediately as it portrays a Sikh character in an “objectionable manner”.

    She demanded that the Union Information and Broadcasting Ministry should ban the series, which is scheduled to be released on Disney+Hotstar platform on June 24.

    Addressing the press conference here on Monday, Kaur said, “A Sikh character has been portrayed in an objectionable manner in a web series called ‘Grahan’ based on the 1984 Sikh genocide. In the web series, the charge of Sikh genocide is being levelled against a Sikh character which is highly condemnable and fabricated.”

    “A legal notice has been sent by a witness of the genocide Nirpreet Kaur to Ajay G Rai, producer of ‘Grahan’ web series and Sunil Ryan, head and president of Disney+Hotstar. The SGPC also supports this notice,” she said.

    SGPC president Kaur said, “Through this web series, work is being done to rub salt on the wounds of Sikhs which would hurt the Sikh sentiments. Such films also hurt the communal harmony in society. Therefore, the government should enact strict Information Technology (IT) rules to curb such sensitive and objectionable trends.”

    Kaur demanded from the Government of India that it should include Sikh representatives in the Censor board so that controversial scenes related to Sikhs and the Sikh faith could be removed in any film.

    The SGPC president warned the ‘Grahan’ producer and the head of Disney+Hotstar that if the objectionable web series is released, legal action would be taken against them by the SGPC as well.

    Meanwhile, Bibi Jagir Kaur has strongly condemned the construction of a replica model of Sachkhand Sri Harmandar Sahib in a park near Punjabi Bagh in Delhi.

    She said the Sikhs could never tolerate a replica of the Golden temple anywhere in the world.

    Kaur said, “When this issue came to light, I was in regular contact with the president of Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (DSGMC) Manjinder Singh Sirsa since yesterday. Today, the DSGMC in support of the Delhi Sangat has immediately removed the replica of Sachkhand Sri Harmandar Sahib.”

    Kaur said, “With such actions, some people are deliberately trying to provoke the Sikh sentiments. Such acts cannot be tolerated and should be stopped immediately. Strict action should be taken against the culprits so that no one could play with the Sikh sentiments.”

    Kaur said about two months ago on April 7, 2021, the SGPC had written a letter to Twitter Chief Executive Officer Jack Dorsey about the alleged hate-filled tweets by some users against Sikhs in India and abroad.

    But the SGPC has neither received any response from Twitter nor any action as yet, she claimed.

    Kaur further said, “The threats to repeat the 1984 genocide of Sikhs on social media platforms are common which spoil the atmosphere and has created a lot of resentment in the minds of Sikhs.

    But no action was ever taken against those who spread hatred against the Sikhs.

    “Such hate propaganda has increased by many folds after the farm agitation was launched against three farm laws passed last year and many Sikh organisations including the SGPC supported the same.”

    She said the support to farmers’ agitation irritated certain elements in India and their supporters abroad.

    “We all know about this certain lobby and how it works in an organised and very vicious way. There has never been any legal action against those indulging in hate-filled propaganda against Sikhs and the utterly communal and anti-Sikh elements multiplied their efforts after the farm agitation”, said Kaur.

  • Pakistan government must ensure Sikhs’ safety: SGPC

    SGPC president Bibi Jagir Kaur raised the demand raising concern over reports of threats to members of the Sikh community in Pakistan.

  • SGPC offices to remain closed on March 26 in support of Bharat Bandh call by farmer unions

    By PTI
    AMRITSAR: The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), apex religious body of the Sikhs, has supported the Bharat Bandh call given for March 26 by the farmer unions and decided to close its offices on Friday.

    SGPC president Jagir Kaur said that the offices of the SGPC would be kept closed in support of the call of Bharat Bandh.

    Farmer unions have called for a Bharat Bandh on March 26, when their protest at Delhi’s borders against the Centre’s three new farm laws completes four months.

    “The SGPC is involved in the struggle of the farmers and would be a part of the Bharat Bandh on March 26,” Kaur said.

    “Also, on Friday, the ‘Nagar Kirtan’ (being taken out from Amritsar to Delhi to mark the 400th birth anniversary of Guru Tegh Bahadur) would reach Sri Fatehgarh Sahib and halt there for one day and leave for the next phase on March 27. I appeal to the sangat to make arrangements accordingly for the reception of Nagar Kirtan at every phase after March 26, with an interval of one day,” she added.

    She said the government of India should “give up its stubbornness and repeal anti-farmer laws”.

    “Governments have a duty to represent the interests of all sections. The SGPC is fully involved in the struggle of the farmers and the services for the farmers would continue,” she said.

    Meanwhile, Kaur said that she has written a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking the reopening of Sri Kartarpur Sahib Corridor.

    “Now that all the institutions and places of worship closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic are reopening as usual, the corridor of Sri Kartarpur Sahib should also be reopened,” she said.

    “The long silence of the government of India after the decision of the government of Pakistan to reopen the corridor was not right. The government should take a decision on this matter soon,” Kaur added.