Haryana Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee: Difference between revisions

Haryana Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee, or HSGPC, is a proposed commiteee, body comprising elected representatives of the Sikhs concerned primarily with the management of sacred Sikh shrines of Haryana and to spread sikhi in Haryana.

The demand first arose when seven Haryana members of the 170-seat strong SGPC, alleged that the state's historical gurdwaras were being neglected "even though they were adding Rs10 crore in the SGPC's kitty every year". The Haryana Congress had, in its election manifesto, promised to form a separate gurdwara management committee as Haryana's Sikhs "were feeling discriminated against by the SGPC". Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda's announcement ruffled many a feather in Punjab.

The Haryana unit of the SGPC is divided over holding of the Sikh sangat in Kurukshetra on March 29, 2009. The meeting has been called by the SGPC to decide which party the Sikh community is likely to vote for in the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections. Interestingly, representatives of all the main political parties have been invited to the sangat to present their parties’ agenda for the Sikhs if they come to power. The leaders invited include Phool Chand Mullana, Haryana Congress president; Atam Prakash Manchanda, BJP state president; Ashok Arora, Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) president; Kuldeep Bishnoi, president of the Haryana Janhit Congress; Raghubir Singh, president of Haryana CPI; and Inderjit Singh, president, CPM, Haryana.

SGPC and other Sikh leaders from Punjab had met the PM three months ago when it became clear that Haryana was heading towards a separate SGPC. Soon after coming to power, Hooda had set up a three-member committee led by cabinet minister HS Chatha to study the possibility of a separate Sikh body. Based on over 1.25 lakh affidavits from Sikhs in Haryana, the committee submitted a report in February, following which the government formed a three-member committee under the advocate-general to facilitate its implementation.

Haryana Janhit Congress (HJC) chief Kuldeep Bishnoi said to reporters "We are in full support for a separate SGPC in Haryana. Now when the committee headed by Agriculture Minister H.S. Chatha has also given the green signal, why is Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda waiting for the month of November for its formulation, He accused the chief minister of "playing with the sentiments of people". "He is not at all devoted to the cause. He is just trying to extract political mileage out of the issue,""

Bhupinder Singh Hooda had announced earlier this week that a separate SGPC for Haryana could be set up Nov 1, the state's formation day.

Views of Akal Takhat

The Sikh clergy has rejected the proposed Haryana Sikh Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (HSGPC). At a meeting of the Sikh High Priests at Akal Takht on aug 12 2009, the leaders consented to formulating an All-India Gurdwara Act (AIGA) that will bring Sikh shrines across the country under one umbrella.

The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) and the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) had earlier expressed reservations against the AIGA, but with other states demanding separate committees — Rajasthan too wants a Sikh body — they seem to have agreed to the new Act.

The Sikh high priests approved the proposition of an Act that will seek amendments to the Sikh Gurdwara Act-1925, which forms the basis of the SGPC controlling gurdwaras in north India. The Act has been a demand of the Sikhs since Independence.

The SGPC had also passed successive resolutions on the demand for an AIGA, but the Akalis took a diverse stand during 1999 when the then head of government-controlled Gurdwara Commission, Harbans Singh, submitted the draft for the Act.

Criticism

Haryana's decision to break away from the Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandak Committee (SGPC) and constitute its own committee has rattled the Akali Dal leadership in Punjab. The issue led to vociferous protests by Akali Dal and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) members in parliament on Thursday.

SGPC president Avtar Singh Makkar said addressing a press conference: "Being a Sikh himself, Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh should pull up and ask (Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh) Hooda why is he interfering in the religious affairs of the Sikhs. The PM should immediately direct Hooda to shelve the move to have a separate SGPC for the State," He said the SGPC had come into existence before country's Independence due to long struggle by many including father of the Prime Minister and warned any attempt by the Haryana Government or anybody else to divide it will not be tolerated at any cost.

Chief minister Parkash Singh Badal and Akali Dal president Sukhbir Badal have decided to urge prime minister Manmohan Singh to restrain Haryana. "No Sikh in this world will like to see a weak SGPC," he said, adding the issue was not one of who will have control over running the affairs of the Gurudwaras, but that of "trust and faith". Makkar said that he had earlier written four letters to the Prime Minister on this issue and met him twice.

Avtar Singh Makkar Claimed "Dr Manmohan Singh himself had earlier told me (before last Lok Sabha polls) that he had directed the Union Home Minister to tell Haryana government not to go ahead with its move on separate SGPC. The PM in my last meeting with him a few months back told me that he would himself telephone Hooda and ask him not to go ahead with his plan,"

The SGPC manages 25 gurdwaras in Haryana, earning Rs 10 crore in revenue from them annually. The gurudwaras came under SGPC control under the all-India Singh Gurdwara Act, 1925, which the Centre passed after a prolonged agitation by the Akali Dal. Senior Akali leaders say Haryana cannot break away from the SGPC unless parliament amends the Gurdwara Act.

Punjab CM Parkash Singh Badal said setting up a separate committee for Haryana's Sikhs will have dangerous consequences. He will meet Manmohan Singh on Monday to seek his intervention. "How will Sikhs tolerate another injustice in religious matters by the Congress government at the Centre, which has been discriminating against this community for the past many decades," Badal asked.

References

• Indian Express Website
• DNAindia Website
• Deccan Chronchile
• Akal Takhat rejected proposal