Akal Takht summons Punjab Education Minister Harjot Bains over Guru Teg Bahadur event

Punjab Education Minister Harjot Singh Bains has been summoned by the Akal Takht on August 6 for allegedly hurting Sikh sentiments by organising entertainment performances at an event in Srinagar marking Guru Teg Bahadur's martyrdom anniversary. The SGPC strongly condemned the act

Chandigarh: The Akal Takht on Monday asked Punjab Cabinet Minister Harjot Singh Bains to appear before the five Singh Sahiban (high priests) on August 6 for allegedly “hurting Sikh sentiments”.

Bains has been summoned for organising “entertainment performances” at a programme held in Jammu and Kashmir’s Srinagar to mark the 350th martyrdom anniversary of Sri Guru Teg Bahadur.

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A meeting of the five ‘Singh Sahiban’ will be convened at the Akal Takht Sahib Secretariat in Amritsar on August 6 under the leadership of the officiating Jathedar Giani Kuldip Singh Gargaj to deliberate on various ‘Panthic’ and religious matters, said a statement.

Bagicha Singh, in-charge of the Akal Takht Secretariat, stated that an e-mail has been sent to Bains, summoning him to appear before the five Singh Sahiban. He added that Jaswant Singh, director of the language department, Punjab, will be summoned at a later date as he has gone abroad until August 12 for a relative’s wedding.

Earlier, the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) had taken strong objection to the “entertainment performances” involving singing and dancing at the event organised by the Punjab government’s language department in Srinagar last month to commemorate the martyrdom anniversary of ninth Sikh Guru, Guru Teg Bahadur.

The SGPC had condemned the performances, calling it a direct affront to Sikh religious values. Education Minister Bains had earlier said that he would appear before the Akal Takht and would be bound to obey every order while accepting his moral responsibility.

Bains had said that he, as a Sikh cabinet minister, seeks forgiveness for whatever happened due to negligence of the organisers, knowingly or unknowingly, at the event.