Two days after saying his resignation because the Jathedar of the Takht Damdama Sahib — one of many 5 temporal seats of Sikhism — Giani Harpreet Singh, 52, determined to withdraw it on Friday.
His transfer to send his resignation to the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) on Wednesday got here after he accused former Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) spokesperson and MLA Virsa Singh Valtoha of issuing threats to him and his household moreover making caste remarks towards him — fees denied by the latter.
Nonetheless, Akal Takht Jathedar Raghbir Singh instantly intervened and issued a directive to the SGPC to not settle for Harpreet Singh’s resignation, threatening that in any other case he’ll give up too. The Akal Takht in Amritsar is the very best temporal physique of Sikhs.
SGPC president Harjinder Singh Dhami didn’t settle for Harpreet Singh’s resignation, asserting that the SGPC stood by him.
On Friday, Harpreet Singh held a gathering with Akal Takht Jathedar Raghbir Singh, following which he stated: “After a directive by Akal Takht Jathedar and SGPC, I’ve determined to withdraw my resignation. I’ll proceed to serve the panth in no matter method I can.”
On Tuesday, Valtoha had appeared earlier than the Akal Takht, which held him “responsible of character assassination of the Sikh clergy” and ordered the Akali Dal to expel him from the social gathering for 10 years. Subsequently, Valtoha resigned from the SAD.
Valtoha was summoned by the Akal Takht after his purported remarks that Jathedars have been allegedly below strain of the BJP and RSS in addition to the Sikh diaspora in delaying decision of the matter of SAD president Sukhbir Badal. He questioned the “delay” in saying the “tankhah” (spiritual punishment) for Sukhbir, who was declared “tankhaiya” (responsible of spiritual misconduct) by the Akal Takht on August 30 for the “errors” dedicated by the earlier SAD-led authorities from 2007 to 2017. He was stated to have “failed” to supply any proof to substantiate his fees.
Harpreet Singh belongs to a Dalit Sikh household from Gidderbaha in Muktsar district. His father was a village granthi. He graduated from Guru Kashi Gurmat Institute and joined the SGPC as a preacher in 1997. He was appointed as the top granthi of the Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Muktsar in 1999. He accomplished his Grasp’s diploma in spiritual research from Panjab College. At present, he’s doing his Ph.D in comparative examine of the teachings of the Quran and the Guru Granth Sahib.
In April 2017, the SGPC appointed Harpreet Singh because the Jathedar of the Damdama Sahib Takht
at Talwandi Sabo in Bathinda district, changing Giani Gurmukh Singh, who had issued statements towards the SGPC alleging that the Akali Dal prime brass had dictated phrases to the Sikh clergy for giving “pardon” to Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh in October 2015 that was later revoked.
In October 2018, Harpreet Singh was named the Performing Jathedar of the Akal Takht as nicely, a place from which he resigned in June final yr following an argument over his attendance within the engagement ceremony of AAP chief Raghav Chadha and Bollywood actor Parineeti Chopra.
Raghbir Singh then took over because the Akal Takht Jathedar.
In April final yr, radical Sikh preacher Amritpal Singh, who’s now an MP from Khadoor Sahib, had requested Harpreet Singh to name a Sarbat Khalsa at Talwandi Sabo on the Baisakhi day. He as a substitute organised a seminar of the Sikh students on the Damdama Sahib Takht on April 7. Amritpal was subsequently arrested below the Nationwide Safety Act and has since been within the Dibrugarh jail in Assam.
The present row has once more pushed the crisis-ridden Akali Dal to the again foot as Harpreet Singh alleged that the social gathering’s social media wing was serving to Valtoha. It’s one other matter that the Damdama Sahib Takht Jathedar had earlier stated that the SAD, a panthic social gathering, have to be “robust” in Punjab.
A big part of the Sikh group and even leaders slicing throughout social gathering traces — together with Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party chief Bhagwant Mann and Congress chief Sukhjinder Randhawa — have prolonged their help to Harpreet Singh and slammed the previous SAD chief.
The Akali Dal management has now additionally distanced itself from Valtoha. SAD working president Balwinder Singh Bhunder informed The Indian Express: ”We apologise for each comment made by Valtoha. We is not going to tolerate something towards the Jathedars. Valtoha had visited the Akal Takht on Tuesday in his private capability and spoke independently. However since he was SAD chief, he ought to have consulted the social gathering earlier than talking something. If anybody commits such a mistake once more, we’ll expel that particular person from the social gathering — and I’ll myself step down as I can’t tolerate something towards our Jathedars.”