AMRITSAR: In a Panthic gathering called by the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee regarding the government's enactment of a law regarding the sacrilege of Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji, all Sikh organizations united today and asked the government to ensure the representation of Panthic sentiments before enacting a law in view of the Jagat Jyot Guru , respect, tradition and uniqueness of Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji.
The meeting was held at the head office of the SGPC, Teja Singh Samundari Hall, in which, apart from the President of the SGPC, Advocate Harjinder Singh Dhami, the acting Jathedar of Sri Akal Takht Sahib and Jathedar Singh Sahib of Takht Sri Keshgarh Sahib Giani Kuldeep Singh Gargajj, Jathedar of Takht Sri Damdama Sahib Giani Tek Singh, the acting Chief Granthi Singh Sahib of Sachkhand Sri Harmandir Sahib Giani Amarjit Singh, the head of Damdami Taksal Baba Harnam Singh Khalsa, the head of Shiromani Panth Akali Buddha Dal Baba Balbir Singh 96th Crore, the head of Dal Baba Bidhi Chand Samprada Baba Avtar Singh Sursingh, the head of Panth Akali Tarna Dal Baba Nihal Singh Harian Velan, Baba Joga Singh Baba Bakala Sahib, Baba Sewa Singh Kar Sewa Sri Khadoor Sahib, Baba Kashmir Singh Kar Sewa Bhuriwale, the chairman of Takht Sri Hazur Sahib Board S. Vijayasatbir Singh, Bhai Gagandeep Singh from Takht Sri Patna Sahib, along with heads of Sikh organizations, sects, Nihang Singh Dal, Kar Sewa Wale Mahapurush, Study Circle, Sikh Missionary College, Udasi, Nirmala and Sewa Panthi sects participated in large numbers.
On this occasion, various speakers while addressing said that while doing any work related to Sikh issues, governments must take the opinion of Sikh institutions and organizations. If governments take action related to Sikh issues on their own will, it will prove to be incomplete.
On this occasion, the view of the majority of speakers came out prominently that the cases of sacrilege of Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji are extremely serious and worrying for the nation, for which there should be provision of strict punishments, but this is not possible through a law made arbitrarily at the government level. Because the law on this matter should be in the direction of Sikh ideology, for which it will not be considered complete without Panthic opinion. He said that clarity in the proposed law is very necessary to prevent the sacrilege of Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji, so that there is no possibility of its misuse. The speakers also emphasized that before we address the question of punishing the perpetrators of sacrilege, it is important to reflect on why incidents of sacrilege are occurring and why governments are indifferent to it.
After hearing the views of the speakers at the gathering, SGPC President Advocate Harjinder Singh Dhami presented a special resolution, which was approved by the audience amidst cheers.
This resolution, accepted by the Panthic gathering, clearly stated that for the Sikhs, Sahib Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji is the Guru Patshah, the owner of the present Nazar, Jagat Jyot, Chavar Chhatar Takht. The sublime and holy Gurbani in Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji is not just a guide but also holds the status of Guru in a tangible and visible form. This uniqueness of Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji is due to the orders given to the Sikhs by the tenth Guru, Sri Guru Gobind Singh Sahib Ji, before he extinguished his Jyot Jyot. In view of this, the incidents of sacrilege of Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji are not only worrying but also heartbreaking for the Sikh community and it is absolutely necessary to stop them. Although in the past, various governments have tried to make legal provisions on this matter keeping in mind the demand of the nation, but no concrete and conclusive achievement could be achieved in this. The process of making laws in this regard by the current Punjab government is certainly a good thing, but it has remained limited to only a government approach, while the Panthic views and suggestions in it are completely negative.
The resolution said that the Shiromani Committee is the representative and accountable body of the Sikhs, therefore it is its responsibility to represent the feelings of the community on every Panthic matter. Therefore, the Panthic gathering feels that the opinion of the entire Panth should reach the government through the Shiromani Committee and this is also necessary because the law to be made is not only a general law, but it is a code born out of the great concern of the Panth. If the Panthic spirit is not included in it, then it will not be able to give conclusive results.
The law to be made to prevent incidents of sacrilege of Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji should not be just a political tool, but it should be a planning of such a code in the direction of commitment and dedication, which, along with protecting the values of religion, represents a sustainable system of faith and belief, is also committed to the prophetic and divine principles of the Sikh community. This is possible only if its establishment includes national ideas and thinking. The Punjab government should not indulge in this very serious matter and should at all costs strive for the opinion of the national unity.
The resolution demanded that in view of the Jagat Jyot Guruship, respect, uniqueness and national sentiments of Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji, the government should ensure the representation of these Panthic views before making the law. It was also said that the government should send the draft of the law to the Shiromani Committee, on which an opinion will be sent back immediately according to Panthic sentiments.