Chief Khalsa Diwan Affairs: Ahead of polls, voices being raised for women’s participation

GS Paul

Amritsar, February 13

As the countdown begins for the elections of Chief Khalsa Diwan (CKD), a 122-year-old Sikh institution, voices are being raised over women’s participation in its affairs being ignored.

While the ruling faction of Chief Khalsa Diwan (CKD) is being led by AAP MLA (South) and incumbent president of the century-old Sikh body Inderbir Singh Nijjar who is contesting for a second term in the ensuing elections, the opposition headed by former revenue commissioner Surinderjit Singh Pall has unexpectedly gained the support of another AAP MLA (East), Jeevan Jyot Kaur.

The Surinderjit Pall faction, under the banner of ‘CKD Bachao Front’, is all set to challenge the Nijjar group.

Dr Sukhbir Kaur Mahal, being the first CKD woman member, and others including Ajit Kaur Ankhi, Harsohin Kaur Sarkaria and Dr Surinderjit Kaur Dhillon jointly raised the point that women’s participation was negligible in the CKD affairs.

Dr Mahal, who served as principal of Khalsa College for Women, Amritsar, for over one and a half decades, said that despite the fact that CKD-run institutions employed 90 per cent women, the need of the hour was to establish a Women Redressal Cell. Surinderjit Pall assured to take it up on priority basis if his team was voted to power. Nonetheless, MLA Jeevan Jyot Kaur’s presence in CKD polls has gained everyone’s attention.

“Though I am not a member of CKD, yet I have a long association with it since the 70s when my mother was the principal of CKD-run Guru Harkrishan Public School in Tarn Taran. All the members of CKD in Tarn Taran were students of my grandfather who also taught in Government Boys School, Tarn Taran, and I am still in touch with them,” she said.

She said social welfare was her forte but the CKD lacked in delivering services in its true letter and spirit. For the past two decades, she has been working extensively for the underprivileged sections of society in the field of health, literacy, slum rehabilitation, vocational education and women empowerment by making them self-reliant through various skill development courses.

“CKD could do wonders in the social and academic field keeping in view its massive budget, but it requires proper vision. I have been assisting this group to bring about change. Similarly, I have observed that no thought was spared to give an equal space to women. I would be inclined to join CKD if given a chance,” she said.

Her initiative ‘EcoShe’ has earned her the title of ‘Pad Woman’, where she spared a thought for the hygiene of the underprivileged women, spreading awareness about the ill-effects of using plastic sanitary pads.

She had defeated the bigwigs, Navjot Singh Sidhu and Bikram Singh Majithia, in the 2022 elections from the East constituency of Amritsar which was then titled as ‘Mother of all battles’.

Meanwhile, CKD’s annual budget for 2023-2024 stood at Rs 157.35 crore. It runs over 50 educational institutes, besides other human welfare institutions such as orphanages, old-age homes and health centres.