Damdami Taksal holds protest outside SGPC headquarters

Manpreet Singh Ayali, Harjot Bains raise issue in assembly

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[e-mail] AMRITSAR/CHANDIGARH: Opposition members were not allowed to present a resolution seeking rejection of the executive body's decision to remove Takht jathedars during the budget session of the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) General House on Friday.

The issue of removal of three jathedars was also raised in the Punjab assembly on Friday. Education minister Harjot Singh Bains, during Zero Hour, demanded a discussion over the issue. He was joined by SAD legislator Manpreet Singh Ayali, who criticised the removal of jathedars and said that the SAD leadership never accepted the edict.

In Amritsar, the budget session, conducted by SGPC president Harjinder Singh Dhami, started amid high-security arrangements made by the SGPC and Punjab Police at Teja Singh Samundri Hall amid a call by opposition members to present a resolution against the removal of jathedars and Damdami Taksal's protest.

The opposition members staged a walkout in protest and announced to call a special general house session on the issue citing Sikh Gurdwara Act 1925, which they claim authorises 15 members to call a meeting. Kiranjot Kaur, who is a member of the house, attempted to read the resolution but was disrupted by the members associated with the Badal camp.

"Despite a written request made by opposition members with signatures of 42 members, the resolution seeking rejection of the SGPC executive committee decisions of removing three jathedars—Giani Raghbir Singh (Akal Takht), Giani Harpreet Singh (Takht Damdama Sahib) and Giani Sultan Singh (Takht Kesgarh Sahib), was not on the agenda of the general house session," Kiranjot Kaur said.