Tercentenary celebrations
Congress to invite Jathedars
Tribune News Service

AMRITSAR, Nov 18 — Even as Congress president Sonia Gandhi has asked all Pradesh Congress Committee chiefs to hold tercentenary celebrations of the birth of the Khalsa in a befitting manner in their respective states, the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee chief has announced that the Punjab Congress would join the "Khalsa march" and other functions organised by Akal Takht chief Ranjit Singh and the Sant Samaj in case of an invitation.

Addressing a press conference here today, Capt Amarinder Singh, PPCC president, said without the participation of the Akal Takht chief, the tercentenary celebrations starting on November 22 at Anandpur Sahib would remain a government show. He said the PPCC would invite jathedars of all Takhts, including Bhai Ranjit Singh, Prof Manjit Singh and Giani Kewal Singh to the programmes being chalked out by the Congress as they (the Jathedars) did not belong to any Akali faction but represented the Sikh masses.

He said it was a matter of concern for the community that the Akal Takht chief had been ignored by the Punjab Government while chalking out programmes in connection with the tercentenary celebrations.

Senior Akali leader Surinder Singh along with 50 panches and sarpanches joined the Congress in the presence of Capt Amarinder Singh. Mr Surinder Singh had contested the previous assembly elections as a rebel Akali candidate against Mr Parkash Singh Majithia from Majitha constituency. He had lost by a narrow margin. He is the second senior leader of the Majha region after Mr Manjinder Singh Behla, a former Akali MLA, to join the Congress.

Capt Amarinder Singh claimed that the hold of the Akali Dal in the region had started dwindling as senior leaders and workers of the Dal feeling "disillusioned". Earlier, Mr Prem Singh Lalpura, MLA had disobeyed the SAD leadership when Mr Sukhbir Singh Badal, son of the Chief Minister, was inducted into the Union Ministry, ignoring his claim.

Capt Amarinder Singh said Punjabis should be ready for mid-term elections as days of the SAD-BJP government were numbered. He said his party had sent a number of complaints to the Chief Election Commission regarding violation of code of conduct by the ruling SAD-BJP combine in Adampur. He said official machinery was being misused" by the state government.

He said the Congress had urged the Election Commission to deploy the CRPF on poll duty as the Congress apprehended booth capturing by ruling party men.

The PPCC chief urged the Akal Takht chief to personally visit Adampur constituency where opium, drugs and intoxicants were being freely distributed among voters to woo them. It was a matter of shame that liquor was being distributed by the ruling party when the nation was celebrating the birth of the Khalsa.

Capt Amarinder Singh said instead of raising arches as part of celebrations, the government should establish a university and chairs after Guru Gobind Singh and his followers. While spending funds on the tercentenary celebrations each penny should be accounted for and there should be total transparency, he added.

Badal, Tohra told to talk with Jathedar
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, Nov 18 — The Khalsa Panth Tercentenary Celebrations Committee constituted by the SGPC has urged the Punjab Chief Minister, Mr Parkash Singh Badal, and the SGPC chief, Mr Gurcharan Singh Tohra, to hold a meeting with the Jathedar of Akal Takht, Bhai Ranjit Singh, to persuade him to participate in the foundation stone laying ceremony of the Khalsa Heritage Memorial Complex at Anandpur Sahib on November 22.

Addressing a press conference at a local Press Club here this morning, Principal Bharbhur Singh, Convener, and Mr Jasmer Singh Bala, Secretary of the committee, said that both Mr Badal and Mr Tohra should resolve the issue and remove the ‘misunderstandings’, if any, in the mind of the Jathedar of Akal Takht with regard to the November 22 ceremony.

They said that non-participation of the Jathedar would send a wrong signal across the Sikh masses and also the ceremony would look incomplete without him. They said that the committee would play a positive role for getting this issue resolved. They were saying all this in the light of the Jathedar’s statement issued yesterday at Amritsar about his decision not to participate in the November 22 ceremony.

They urged the Central Government to route the grant of Rs 100 crore announced by it in connection with the celebrations through the SGPC for taking up various projects. They also urged the Central Government to direct the national committee constituted under the leadership of the Prime Minister to unfold its "action plan" with regard to the celebrations.

Principal Bharbhur Singh and Mr Bala said that all embassies should be directed to inform Sikhs and Punjabis living abroad about the functions to be held at Anandpur Sahib in April next year.

Revealing the programme chalked out by the committee regarding the celebrations, they said that on November 21 a national convention would be held at the local Guru Gobind Singh College at which the former Prime Minister, Mr Chandra Shekhar, would be the chief guest and eminent scholars would present their papers.

The SGPC would set up a Sikh seminar on 25 acres at Anandpur Sahib at which training with regard to music, martial arts, fine arts and religion would be imparted. About 300 books would be published about Sikhism and its all aspects and roads from Anandpur Sahib to the national capital Delhi would be decorated.

Religious processions would start from Lahore, Hastinapur (near Delhi), Dawarka, Bidar and Puri, the places to which the Panj Piaras belonged. All arrangements in this connection had been made and the matter had been taken up with the Pakistan Government, they added. The marches from all these five places would meet at Kiratpur Sahib on April 9 for onward journey to Anandpur Sahib together.