Can AAP Supremo Arvind Kejriwal order police to search Akal Takht and SGPC offices?
By Satinder Bains
AMRITSAR: A major political and religious controversy has erupted in Punjab over the investigation into the alleged disappearance of 328 saroops (holy forms) of Sri Guru Granth Sahib, with sharp questions being raised on whether the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) supremo Arvind Kejriwal and CM Bhagwant Mann can order the Punjab Police to raid the office of the Akal Takht and Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) in Amritsar to recover records related to the case.
The issue has snowballed after Amritsar Police Commissioner Gurpreet Singh Bhullar stated that the SGPC was not cooperating with a Special Investigation Team (SIT) constituted to probe the matter. According to the police, repeated requests for documents and records pertaining to the missing saroops were allegedly not fully complied with, prompting stronger investigative steps.
In a significant development, the Punjab Police have registered an FIR against 16 former employees of the SGPC in connection with the case. Three of them have been arrested so far, including Satinder Singh Kohli, a former chartered accountant of the SGPC. Kohli is known to be a close confidant of Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal, whose party has long controlled the SGPC.
These arrests have triggered intense political speculation, with SAD leaders and sections of Sikh bodies expressing apprehension that the investigation could be used to target senior Akali leadership. There are fears being openly voiced in political circles that Sukhbir Singh Badal himself could face arrest, a move that would dramatically escalate tensions between the ruling AAP and the Akali Dal.
Reacting strongly, SGPC president Harjinder Singh Dhami has warned the AAP leadership, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, and Arvind Kejriwal against what he termed “interference in the religious affairs of Sikhs.” Dhami asserted that the SGPC is a religious body constituted under the Sikh Gurdwaras Act and enjoys autonomy in managing Sikh institutions. Any police action within the SGPC complex, he cautioned, would be seen as an attack on Sikh religious rights and sentiments.
The controversy has revived painful historical memories in Punjab. Critics argue that allowing police entry into the SGPC premises would be fraught with risk, citing past incidents such as the police entry into the Golden Temple complex during the Barnala government in the late 1980s and, more traumatically, Operation Blue Star in 1984. Though the SGPC office is administratively distinct from the Golden Temple, Sikh organizations argue that any police action in the vicinity of central Sikh institutions carries deep symbolic and emotional implications.
Political observers warn that if Arvind Kejriwal, as AAP’s national convener, is perceived to be directing or influencing such action, it could boomerang badly on the party in Punjab, where religious sensitivities remain extremely high. The issue has already sparked heated debates across television studios, social media platforms, and gurdwaras.
The AAP, however, has sought to project the investigation as a purely legal exercise. A party spokesperson said that the police are acting strictly in accordance with law and under judicial scrutiny. He pointed out that the Punjab and Haryana High Court has ordered a probe into the missing saroops and that the state government is duty-bound to ensure compliance. Addressing concerns over religious sanctity, the spokesperson said that if any such situation arises, the maryada (religious protocol) of the complex would be fully respected and any search would be conducted with “great caution and sensitivity.”
Adding another layer of complexity, the SGPC has maintained that it is not withholding records. According to SGPC officials, the relevant documents were earlier submitted to the Akal Takht, the highest temporal seat of Sikh authority, and are currently with the Akal Takht Jathedar. The SGPC has also pointed out that it had once passed a resolution to report the matter to the police but later withdrew it, opting instead to place the issue before Sikh religious authorities.
This has led to the most sensitive question now dominating public discourse: if the police insist on accessing records allegedly lying with the Akal Takht, can they search the Akal Takht office itself? Sikh scholars, religious leaders, and constitutional experts are divided. While police argue that no institution can be above the law in a criminal investigation, Sikh bodies insist that any police entry into the Akal Takht premises would be unacceptable and could trigger a serious law-and-order crisis.
As the probe continues, Punjab finds itself at a delicate crossroads where issues of accountability, law enforcement, political rivalry, and religious autonomy are colliding. How the state government navigates this minefield may not only determine the course of the investigation into the missing saroops but also shape the future political and social stability of Punjab.