Dhumma has his way: Jathedar skips annual message

Indian Express

10 hours ago

In a break from a 40-year-old tradition, Akal Takht's acting Jathedar Kuldeep Singh Gargajj did not deliver the annual customary message to the community on Operation Blue Star anniversary,
to avoid any controversy with Panthic bodies. Gargajj, however he preformed the 'ardas' (prayer according to Sikh rituals) to mark the event.
Damdami Taksal chief Harnam Singh Dhumma had earlier opposed Gargajj's appointment as the acting Jathedar of the Akal Takht saying it was in violation of 'maryada' and 'panthic traditions'.
During the ardas, the Jathedar said this pious spiritual place (Golden Temple and Akal Takht) should never be a place of turmoil as everybody wants peace here. He also raised several issues, including the 'targeting of Sikhs in India and abroad,' the concept of a 'Sikh homeland,' and 'discrimination against Sikhs.'
Gargajj prayed for strength, unity, harmony, and togetherness within the Khalsa Panth and sought blessings for the community to follow in the footsteps of the community's warriors and martyrs. Speaking to the media later, Gargajj expressed strong objection to 'the planned events being held in Batala city under the name 'crusade', in the context of religious conversions'.
He said, 'Punjab is the land sanctified by the Sikh Gurus, and seeds of hatred must not be sown here. There is the need for the Sikh community to respond to this issue with compassion and to embrace those who have drifted toward other faiths.' Earlier, Harjinder Singh Dhami, president of the Shiromani Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC), honoured the family members of the Sikhs who were killed along with Jarnail singh Bhindranwale in the Golden Temple complex during the Army action in June 1984. According to tradition, it was the Akal Takht Jathedar who every year honours the families of those who were killed in the Army action. According to sources, it was decided in a series of meetings Jathedar Gargajj would neither deliver the annual message nor offer the siropa (robe of honour) to the families of those who died in 1984.
When asked if he has scored a victory by not allowing Gargajj to issue message to the community, Dhuma said that he was not in favor of making such claims because that would be a form of arrogance, which is not acceptable in the Guru's house.
He added that in the near future, all Panthic organisations will sit together and deliberate on the process of appointing Jathedars. He said that if the SGPC appoints the Jathedars of the Takhts with the consensus of all Sikh organisations, then there will be no dispute. Disputes arise only when the Panth is not taken into confidence, he said.
It is not first time that Jathedar has faced the opposition. It was, however, the first time when SGPC was not seen standing with the Jathedar.
Former Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Gurbachan Singh too had faced huge opposition from the community after he issued pardon to Dera Sacha Sauda head Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh in 2015. SGPC made sure that he was allowed to issue his annual message on the occasions of Diwali and Operation Blue Star anniversaries. Gurbachan Singh resigned in 2018 and was replaced by the Giani Harpreet Singh, who gained the confidence of community.
Meanwhile, Shiromani Akali Dal (Amritsar) president Simranjit Singh Mann heaped praise on Gargajj said, saying that despite the restrictions, the Jathedar 'conveyed his message emphasising the need for a Sikh homeland and raising concerns over the ongoing massacre of Sikhs abroad'.
Mann also condemned the 'forces' that barred Jathedar from delivering his annual message.