Chandigarh: Akal Takht - the supreme temporal seat of Sikhs – on Monday awarded religious punishment to the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Badal and former Akali ministers, for the religious misconduct by way of taking controversial decisions during SAD rule from 2007 to 2017 and also striped party patriarch and the then chief minister Parkash Singh Badal of the "Fakhr-e-Qaum’’ (pride of Sikh community) title.
The title of "Panth Rattan Fakhr-e-Qaum’’ was bestowed on Parkash Singh Badal by Akal Takht in the Golden Temple complex in 2011 in recognition of his services during his long political career.
Announcing the quantum of "tankhah’’ (religious punishment) for the said misconduct, Panj Singh Sahiban (five high priests) headed by the Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Raghbir Singh also passed political strictures against Sukhbir asking the SAD working committee to accept Sukhbir’s resignation as the party president within three days and constitute a panel to reorganise the party in six months.
The Jathedar who addressed the "guilty’’ Akali leaders from the "Faseel’’ (podium) of the Akal Takht and directed them to wear a plaque around their neck with a message of their admittance of guilty.
It may be recalled that Sukhbir was was declared "Tankhaiya’’ as a part of "religious punishment’’ on August 30, last; however, since he had suffered a hairline fracture in his leg, he was directed to serve at the entrance of Golden Temple while Attiring a guard’s dress while sitting on his wheelchair. Senior leader Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa was also awarded the same punishment keeping in mind his old age and health issues.
Other Akali leaders were directed to clean the washrooms of the Golden Temple complex, wash dishes and also clean the shoes of the devotees, for one hour each.
It may be recalled that the "mistakes’’ committed by the Akali leaders mentioned above included - revocation of the blasphemy case against Sirsa-based Dera Sacha Sauda head Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh for imitating Guru Gobind Singh in 2007, the failure to punish perpetrators of the Bargari sacrilege and police officials for the Kotkapura and Behbal Kalan firing incidents, appointment of controversial IPS officer Sumedh Saini as Punjab DGP besides giving Farzana Alam, the wife of controversial police officer Izhar Alam, the party ticket in the 2012 assembly polls and failing to deliver justice to victims in fake encounter cases.
It was because of these "mistakes’’ that some of the senior SAD leaders had rebelled against Sukhbir Badal earlier this year and approached Akal Takht admitting mistakes and stating that these ``mistakes’’ had damaged the image of Panth and weakened the SAD.
