Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann arrived at the Golden Temple on Thursday to express gratitude for the successful enactment of a stricter law against the sacrilege of Guru Granth Sahib, even as Akal Takht acting jathedar Giani Kuldeep Singh Gargaj voiced disapproval over a lack of Panthic consultation.
Outside the shrine, Mann told the media that the law was finalised after deep deliberation with “renowned Sikh lawyers” to ensure no future amendments would be necessary.
While avoiding a direct confrontation with Akal Takht, the chief minister targeted the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), questioning its standing. “It’s been 14 years since an SGPC election was held. It is no longer a constitutional body. The sangat (Sikh community) across entire world accepts this law. Why is it not accepted by the largest Sikh organisation? It had raised the demand for the enactment of such a law. Now they’re saying that it is not acceptable to them. In fact, it is not acceptable to their bosses, who are involved in sacrilege cases.”
On Punjab assembly Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan being summoned to Akal Takht over the issue on May 8, the chief minister said, “He (Sandhwan) will come here. He has been called at Akal Takht for discussion. He will present his side there. However, the Bill was passed by the Punjab Vidhan Sabha unanimously. Before that, it was passed by the state cabinet. Its draft was prepared after consultation with lawyers. Sant Samaj was present in the governor’s gallery in the Vidhan Sabha during the passage of the Bill. Speaker sahib only read out the Bill during the assembly session. The entire Sikh sangat is glad over the Act. If some bodies are not happy, I don’t know about it,” he said.
Claims BJP has ‘anti-Punjab mindset’
Targeting the BJP over the deaths of 700 farmers during the farm agitation in his address at Rayya town, Mann said Punjab would never forgive those who crushed the voices of annadatas, while simultaneously attempting to weaken the state’s rights, resources and identity.
Mann said, “The BJP’s anti-Punjab mindset has been exposed repeatedly, whether through the deaths of 700 farmers during the farmers’ agitation, attempts to stop Punjab’s tableaux, efforts to divert Punjab’s waters to Haryana through the Bhakra Beas Management Board, attempts to snatch Panjab University, efforts to take control of Chandigarh, or conspiracies to shut down Aam Aadmi Clinics.”
“BJP thrives on divisive politics,” he said, adding any renewed alliance between the Shiromani Akali Dal and the saffron party would once again prove that both parties are “two sides of the same coin,” he said. “If such an alliance takes shape again, Punjab will suffer because the alliance is driven purely by political survival and self-interest rather than the welfare of Punjabis. This unholy alliance is anti-Punjab and both parties will ultimately destroy each other politically,” he said.
The CM said the SAD and the Badal family stand politically shattered today because “the court of the Almighty ultimately delivers justice.”
Thanking people for their continued love and support, he said neither the Akalis nor the Congress could be trusted because of their dubious political character. He criticised the Akalis for monopolising religion and controlling religious institutions for political gain, alleging that office-bearers of religious bodies are appointed directly at the behest of the Badal family.
