Rebel leaders of the Shiromani Akali Dal on Monday appeared before the Akal Takht jathedar and apologized for the “mistakes” committed when their party was in power in the state.
The apology letter was handed over to Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Raghbir Singh at the Akal Takht Secretariat at the Golden Temple in Amritsar. The Akal Takht is the supreme temporal seat of the Sikhs.
In the letter, the The leaders apologized for the “four mistakes” during the former SAD regime between 2007 and 2017, including the failure to punish those responsible for the 2015 sacrilege incidents and the pardoning of Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh in the blasphemy case of 2007.
They also blamed SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal, who was the deputy chief minister at the time, for the “mistakes”.
The rebel leaders said that the Sikh panth and people of Punjab turned away from the Akali Dal due to these “mistakes”, while stating that they were prepared to face any punishment in accordance with Sikh principles.
Because of this, the SAD faced “failures” not only on the religious front but also suffered from popular apathy in the political arena, the rebel leaders said, although they acknowledged that they also remained part of the party leadership as these events unfolded.
Reacting to Badal’s apology in 2023 for failing to nab the culprits involved in the sacrilege incidents, rebel leaders recently said the pardon sought by the SAD chief was neither from the Akal Takht nor did it follow the rites and rituals of Sikh principles.
A section of senior party leaders have risen up against Badal, demanding that he resign as party chief following his debacle in the recent Lok Sabha elections in Punjab.
Recently, the rebel leaders had decided to launch the ‘Akali Dal Bachao Lehar’ and sought the ouster of Sukhbir Badal as SAD president.
Among the prominent leaders who have raised a flag of rebellion are former MP Prem Singh Chandumajra, former SGPC chief Bibi Jagir Kaur, former legislator Gurpartap Singh Wadala, former minister Parminder Singh Dhindsa and party leader Sucha Singh Chhotepur, all of whom have appeared before the jathedar of Akal Takht.
The letter also referred to the 2015 sacrilege incidents and said the then Akali government could not ensure punishment of the culprits in those cases. The incidents of sacrilege sparked outrage in the Sikh panth, the letter said.
But the (then) Shiromani Akali Dal government and the then Home Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal and Shiromani Akali Dal president failed to get this matter investigated in a timely manner or to ensure that the culprits were punished, he said.
As a result, the situation worsened in Punjab and tragic incidents took place in Kotkapura and Behbal Kalan, he claimed.
The Shiromani Akali Dal government could not hold any official responsible for these incidents, he claimed.
The incidents involving the theft of a copy of the Guru Granth Sahib, putting up of handwritten sacrilegious posters and finding torn out pages of the holy book scattered in Bargari, took place in Faridkot in 2015.
These incidents sparked protests in Faridkot. Two people were killed in Behbal Kalan and others were injured in Kotkapura in Faridkot in October 2015 when police fired on protesters.
The letter also mentions the 2007 blasphemy case that was registered against Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh for allegedly imitating the 10th Sikh teacher, Guru Gobind Singh, in Salabatpura in 2007.
“Instead of taking further action to punish the person, the SAD government withdrew this case,” the letter said.
In 2021, Badal claimed that the SAD government had never withdrawn the blasphemy complaint against the Dera chief, who is currently incarcerated in a Haryana jail. Ram Rahim has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for raping two female disciples.
The letter also claimed that Badal allegedly used his influence to ensure that the Dera chief was pardoned in the blasphemy case.
“But the leaders of Shiromani Akali Dal and Shiromani Committee (SGPC) had to go back on this decision considering the anger and resentment of the Sikh Panth,” he said.
In 2015, the Akal Takht pardoned the Dera chief in the blasphemy case based on a written apology. However, bowing to pressure from the Sikh community and hardliners, it reversed its decision.
The rebel leaders also criticized the then Akali government for appointing Sumedh Singh Saini as director general of police and accused him of failing to fulfill his promise to form a commission to investigate the “fake police encounters”.
“Because of this and similar developments, the Sikh panth became angry and disappointed with the leadership of the Shiromani Akali Dal. As a result of this, his position in the political and religious spheres was weakened,” the letter says.
“We also acknowledge that we could not stop the wrong approach of the Akali Dal and SGPC leadership, despite repeatedly raising these painful issues within the party,” he added.
The leaders claimed that they had urged the party’s senior leadership to appear before the Akal Takht, repent for their “mistakes” and express remorse as per the ‘Gurmat maryada’ (religious code of ethics). But his appeal was rejected.
“As part of the Shiromani Akali Dal leadership at that time, we felt a burden on our minds. That is why we have come to you to apologise for the mistakes through this letter,” the leaders said.
“We are ready to accept any punishment given by the Akal Takht according to the ‘Gurmat’ tradition for these errors so that we can be relieved of this burden,” he added.
After the meeting with the jathedar, the leaders offered prayers standing in front of the Akal Takht and sought forgiveness.
Speaking to reporters in Amritsar, the rebel leaders expressed their commitment to revive the SAD and serve the panth.
On Monday morning, some rebel leaders went to the Amritsar home of Khadoor Sahib MP-elect Amritpal Singh and met his parents.
Radical preacher Amritpal is yet to take the oath as he is in an Assam jail, detained under the National Security Act.
