CHANDIGARH-Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Punjab Media In-charge Baltej Pannu on Monday tore into the Badal family for reducing the historic Akali Dal from a Panthic movement built on sacrifice into a family-owned political party, pointing out that its leadership had systematically sought to capture Sikh institutions and use them for personal and political interests. Referring to the controversy surrounding Amarjit Singh Chawla and the woman who was accommodated for months at an SGPC-run sarai in Sri Anandpur Sahib, Baltej Pannu questioned how such powers were granted, why the woman was brought there by Virsa Singh Valtoha and Sarabjit Singh Jhinjer, and what action Shiromani Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC) president Harjinder Singh Dhami took on her complaint.
Addressing a press conference, AAP Punjab Media In-charge Baltej Pannu said the history of the Akali Morchas was a history of sacrifice, in which ordinary Akalis went to jail with nothing but a parna on their shoulders and earned the word ‘Jathedar’ through their sacrifices. “That word was earned; it was not something that could simply be attached to one’s name, ” Baltej Pannu said, adding that the tradition had now disappeared because a certain family had captured this front. He said even Parkash Singh Badal could not add ‘Jathedar’ to his name throughout his political career because that status required a much greater contribution.
The AAP Punjab Media In-charge said the Badal family could no longer claim that the Shiromani Akali Dal (Badal) was genuinely a regional or representative Panthic party. “The name, Akali Dal Badal, itself makes it clear that it has become a party of one family, ” Baltej Pannu said, questioning what agenda the Badal-led Akali Dal had actually set for the Sikh community.
Referring to the recent FIR against former Shiromani Akali Dal leader and Shiromani Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC) member Amarjit Singh Chawla, he said the allegations made by a woman at a sarai in Sri Anandpur Sahib had raised serious questions about the functioning of Sikh institutions. “The FIR contains allegations by a woman that she was held captive at a sarai in Sri Anandpur Sahib. How could a woman remain accommodated at an SGPC-run sarai for months? Who provided her accommodation, vehicle and other facilities and who bore the expenses? He questioned.
Baltej Pannu specifically questioned the role of SGPC president Harjinder Singh Dhami and demanded that Harjinder Singh Dhami explain what action was taken when the woman approached him with her complaint. “You say there is no need for the police and that you would handle everything yourself. Then why did you remain silent for weeks and months?” he asked.
Baltej Pannu also questioned the political and organisational links surrounding Amarjit Singh Chawla, asking why Youth Akali Dal President Sarabjit Singh Jhinjer arranged the woman’s ticket from Bahrain, why Virsa Singh Valtoha was involved and for what purpose the press conference was originally organised. He said these questions must be answered by Sukhbir Singh Badal and Harjinder Singh Dhami.
Baltej Pannu further questioned why Amarjit Singh Chawla continued to use the word ‘Bhai’ with his name despite the gravity of the allegations, saying that such titles in Sikh tradition were earned through conduct and contribution.
Baltej Pannu also referred to the subsequent action by the Sri Akal Takht Sahib, which on September 20 excommunicated Amarjit Singh Chawla and SGPC employee Malkit Singh from the Khalsa Panth following the controversy. “This episode is not an isolated issue but part of the Badal family’s wider pattern of controlling and using Sikh institutions, ” he affirmed.
Referring to the 2015 beadbi controversy, Baltej Pannu said, “The Guru Granth Sahib bir was stolen from Burj Jawahar Singh Wala and that posters challenging the authorities were put up for months without effective action. When the Sikh sangat came onto the roads in protest following subsequent incidents of sacrilege, water cannons, tear gas and firing were used against protesters.”
Baltej Pannu also referred to the Kotkapura and Behbal Kalan firing cases, saying that the Badal government’s handling of the situation resulted in hurting the faith of Sikh sangat. “Two Sikh youths were subjected to severe torture in an attempt to shift blame for sacrilege onto Sikhs themselves. The people of Punjab have not forgotten what happened between 2015 and 2017, ” he said.
Baltej Pannu said that another part of the Badal agenda was to capture Sikh institutions and then use those institutions for political and personal benefits.
Referring to statements made in the Punjab Vidhan Sabha concerning the use of SGPC resources for a langar at someone’s bhog, Baltej Pannu said, “Even religious institutions were made to serve the interests of the Badal family. Why were individuals facing serious controversy repeatedly given prominence by the Badal leadership?”
Referring to a recent event at Gurdwara Kandh Sahib in Batala, Baltej Pannu said that Sucha Singh Langah was given a stage despite opposition from Sikh sangat. He contrasted this with the action taken against others and asked what message such decisions sent about the functioning of Sikh institutions.
Baltej Pannu said the central question was why individuals such as Amarjit Singh Chawla were given such extensive powers within institutions that were supposed to serve the Sikh community. “How could two permanent rooms be given? How could a woman be kept there for months? How were a vehicle and sewadars provided? Who paid for all this?” he asked.
Baltej Pannu also directly questioned SGPC president Harjinder Singh Dhami’s repeated political positioning, saying that Harjinder Singh Dhami had described himself as a “soldier of Sukhbir Singh Badal”. “He must now tell the Sikh community whether he is acting as a soldier of the Badal family or as a servant of the Guru Sahib, ” he asserted.
Baltej Pannu demanded that the SGPC put up boards and photographs of individuals who had now been excommunicated from the Sikh Panth outside gurdwaras and sarais so that the sangat could remain vigilant. “The community has a right to know why the action had been taken against those expelled from the Panth, ” he added.
Questioning the silence of Badal family leaders, Baltej Pannu asked why Harsimrat Kaur Badal had not spoken even a single word on the allegations concerning the woman, and why Bikram Majithia and other leaders who frequently go live on every issue had remained silent. “Sukhbir Badal must answer who gave Amarjit Chawla such powers, why those powers were given and how the institutions under the SGPC were allowed to reach such a situation. The Badal family had already caused immense damage to Punjab during its years in government and alleged that the drug and gangster problems that emerged during that period had caused deep damage to the state, ” he affirmed.
Baltej Pannu said, “The Bhagwant Mann government is working to bring Punjab back on the right track, but the damage being done to Sikh institutions by the Badal group has created another serious challenge.”
The AAP Punjab Media In-charge appealed to Sikh intellectuals and the wider Sikh community across the world to speak up. “If the Sikh intellectuals and Punjabis remained silent, the Badal family and its ‘coterie’ would cause further damage to Sikh institutions and Punjab. The time has come to remove Sukhbir Badal and the people he has placed in control of Sikh institutions from Punjab’s politics and from these institutions, ” Baltej Pannu said, urging Punjabis and the Sikh community to raise their voice before any further damage was done.