COURTEY HT JAN 12

Farm stir effect: Panthic bodies drop protest for missing saroops
Surjit Singh

surjit.singh@htlive.com

AMRITSAR : The farmers’ agitation against the three Central agri-laws has come as a respite for the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) and its top brass, as it had faced the heat of protests of the Sikh community over the Guru Granth Sahib’s holy saroops going missing in its record, before the farm stir started.

The SGPC has a new president in Bibi Jagir Kaur.

In their protest, Sikh organisations had sought clarity on the whereabouts of the saroops, besides criminal cases against SGPC members that an Akal Takht probe panel had found guilty.

‘It is a matter of misappropriation in record’

The SGPC and Akal Takht acting jathedar Giani Harpreet Singh have maintained that it was a matter of misappropriation in record, and not of missing saroops.

“We have not discarded our fight for justice in the case of missing holy saroops, but postponed it due to the farmer agitation. We don’t want to give anyone an opportunity to allege that we are trying to divert attention from the farmer agitation by raising this issue,” said Bhai Gurpreet Singh Randhawe Wale, SGPC member and also part of the Panthic Akali Lehar.

This organisation, with the support of splinter Akali groups, and former Akal Takht jathedar Bhai Ranjit Singh had opened up a front against the SGPC, but is quiet now.

To press for the demands, Guru Granth Sahib Satkar committee, in collaboration with like-minded organisations, shad organised the first indefinite morcha on the premises of the Golden Temple.

The SGPC forcibly removed it.

After this, another indefinite morcha was started by sacked Golden Temple hazuri ragi Bhai Baldev Singh Wadala, head of the Sikh Sadbhawna Dal, along the fountain chowk on the Heritage Street, leading to the Golden Temple.

This organisation has also staged protests outside houses of cabinet ministers and the Amritsar police commissioner seeking registration of first information report (FIR )against the SGPC functionaries held guilty, but the government did not act.

Morcha by Wadala fails to draw attention

The morcha by Wadala is still on, but is failing to draw attention due to the farmer protest in Delhi.

Sikh protesters have set up a makeshift tent, but the venue is deserted.

“Our agitation will continue as we had taken a vow before the Akal Takht to fight for this, irrespective of the fate of our protest,” said Wadala.

‘We are now stronger, as we have 2 executive members in SGPC’

“We are waiting for resolution of the farmers’ issue, following which we will raise this issue more aggressively. SGPC president Bibi Jagir Kaur must keep this in mind. We are now stronger, as we have two executive members and 20 members in the SGPC,” said Bhai Gurpreet of the SGPC.