SAD(A) protests against SGPC, seeks early general polls

Sikh activists under the banner of Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), Amritsar, led by Iman Singh Mann staged a protest outside the Golden Temple complex against what they said was lapses on the part of the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) and demanded that general elections to the Sikh body be held as soon as possible.

Carrying banners, the protestors including Gurdeep Singh Bathinda, Satnam Singh Manawa, Balwinder Singh Kala and Ranjit Singh Damdami Taksal alleged the misappropriation of 328 saroops of Sri Guru Granth Sahib from the possession of the SGPC. The protesters also demanded that the SGPC general elections should be conducted and the existing body shunted out. They also resented that justice was not delivered in the case of 2015 sacrilege incidents at Behbal Kalan and Kotkapura during the SAD regime, that lead to firing, claiming two innocent lives.

The matter of missing saroops came to light on June 26, 2020, after the Punjab Human Rights Organisation (PHRO) wrote a letter to the Punjab government and the Akal Takht. The Akal Takht-appointed panel had held SGPC officials and employees responsible for misappropriation of records of not 267 but 328 ‘saroops’. The panel had found embezzlement in case of additional 61 ‘saroops’ after scrutinising the ledgers of 2013-14 and 2014-15.

Facing flak from various Sikh organisations, the SGPC had stated that it was a case of misappropriation by some of its employees, whose services were suspended or terminated and their service dues were revoked. They are still fighting a legal battle against the SGPC decision.

On the SGPC’s general polls, the process of finalising new electoral rolls is on. The last date for voters’ registration has been fixed for October 31 and the elections may be held next year.