Haryana's demand for separate SGPC will never be a reality: Punjab CM

Chandigarh: Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal on Friday said though his party Shiromani Akali Dal was not fond of organising “morchas”, but Haryana’s demand for a separate committee for management of gurudwaras would “never happen in reality.”

Meanwhile, despite opposition from Punjab, Haryana remained firm on its stand and recently notified a 41-member ad hoc Haryana Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee (HSGPC) to manage Sikh shrines in the state.

Badal however reiterated his stand and said, “The separate committee for management of gurudwaras in Haryana would never happen in reality.”

“Rather it was a deliberate attempt to divide the Sikhs and dilute their institutions,” an official statement quoting Badal said in Chandigarh.

He said that the Shiromani Akali Dal was not fond of organising morchas but at the same time they would not allow the anti-Sikh forces to weaken their institutions.

Badal also said that he was in constant touch with the Government of India through their emissary, former Union Minister, Shanta Kumar, who has assured him of early resolution of this vexed issue.

He said that the party would chalk out its future course of action on 27 July at Amritsar during the World Sikh Conference.

Haryana Sikhs too have also called a meeting at Karnal on 28 July.

Punjab has been protesting since past some time after it became known that Haryana government has decided to take steps to form the HSGPC following demands of Sikhs of the state.

Senior Congress leader Ashwani Kumar in a statement said the reported statement of Badal of his intention to court arrest, if necessary, and to launch a “morcha” against Haryana SGPC is indeed a cause of grave concern.

“His statement that the decision regarding HSGPC represents a conflict between the Sikh religion and Congress could not have been farther from the truth. Congress respects all religious sensitivities as also our non-negotiable constitutional principles,” the Congress MP said.

“The attempt to create a wedge between states and communities along communal lines is a frontal assault on the first principles of our federal polity and an affront to the Constitution. The only democratic way to resolve sensitive issues is through constructive negotiations within the framework of the law,” he said.

Kumar said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi whose party is in alliance with the Akalis should intervene to personally ensure that nothing is done by the Akali leadership that could disturb communal harmony, peace and political stability in any part of the country.

Haryana Assembly at its session here on 11 July passed the Haryana Sikh Gurdwara Management Bill 2014 to which Governor Jagan Nath Pahadia gave his assent on 14 July despite opposition from SGPC leaders from Punjab.

Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda has also rejected the protests of Akalis in Punjab saying the state was within its right to take steps to protect the interests of its residents.

Chief Secretary of Haryana, SC Chaudhary on the protest of Punjab said those opposed to Haryana’s move could challenge it before the court as the Bill has become an Act.

“In case anyone has any objection, he can challenge it in the court of law. The court would see whether it is legal or not and deliver its verdict or the Vidhan Sabha can amend it,” an official release quoting Chaudhary said here earlier.

The BJP-led NDA government also asked Haryana chief secretary and state Governor’s office to withdraw the assent to the new Bill, but the state government rejected the suggestion conveyed through Union Home Secretary Anil Goswami.

The row over separate SGPC has evoked sharp criticism from the Punjab’s ruling SAD, in particular chief minister Badal, who has termed Haryana’s move to “weaken and divide” the Sikh community while Akal Takht, the supreme temporal seat, has excommunicated three Sikh leaders including Haryana Finance Minister H S Chatha, who headed a committee, which recommended formation of the new ad hoc HSGPC body.

The Akal Takht has also rejected the request of the HSGPC supporters urging the body to reconsider its decision. Amritsar-based SGPC, the apex religious body of the Sikhs, too has been critical of Haryana’s move.

Haryana goes to polls for a new assembly in October and the Akalis and even Haryana’s opposition parties, the INLD and BJP have criticised the Congress over the separate panel, which they claim has been formed only with an eye on the Sikh votes.

The Congress had made poll promise in 2005 for a separate SGPC, but the issue had remained unsettled during chief minister Hooda’s first term.

PTI