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Punjab

SAD to participate in Khalsa March by SGPC on Oct 7 against Haryana Sikh Gurdawara Committee

AMRIK SINGH | September 30, 2022 07:06 PM

CHANDIGARH: The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) today endorsed the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee’s call to hold a Khalsa March from Takth Sri Keshgarh Sahib and Takth Sri Damdama Sahib to Sri Akal Takth Sahib on October 7 even as it requested the central government to file a review petition or pass a new law to do away with the validation of the Haryana Sikh Gurdwara Committee Act, 2014 by the Supreme Court.

A decision to this effect was taken at a meeting of the party’s legislators, former legislators and constituency incharges’ here which was presided over by SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal.

Giving details, former minister Dr Daljit Singh Cheema said the Khalsa March was being held to protest against the interference in Sikh affairs as well as the deep rooted conspiracy to break the Shiromani Committee. “The SAD has decided to support the SGPC’s initiative to highlight the discrimination meted out to the community and ensure justice is done to it”.

Terming the 2014 Act which was passed by the erstwhile Bhupinder Singh Hooda led Congress government as illegal and unconstitutional; the SAD leader said it was unfortunate that both the present Haryana and Punjab governments as well as the central government had supported the move in court. “This has hurt the sentiments of the Sikh community which rightly feels that Sikhs have been discriminated against with the validation of the Haryana Committee by the apex court”. He said the move should be reversed to ensure there was no unrest in the community.

Meanwhile Dr Cheema said the meeting also took note of the inordinate delay on the part of the central government in deciding the mercy petition of Sikh detenue Bhai Balwant Singh Rajoana. He said the meeting called upon the centre to release Bhai Rajoana immediately keeping in view the fact that the central government had given a commitment on the occasion of the 550th birth anniversary of Sri Guru Nanak Dev ji that Bhai Rajoana’s death sentence would be commuted to life as well as the fact the detenue had already completed a life term.

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