SGPC seeks Punjab governor's help in gurbani row

A delegation led by Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee chief Harjinder Singh Dhami on Thursday met Punjab Governor Banwarilal Purohit and asked him to nullify the Sikh Gurdwaras (Amendment) Bill, 2023, passed by the state assembly.

He was speaking to reporters outside the Raj Bhawan after meeting Purohit on the issue.

The Punjab assembly on Tuesday passed the Bill to ensure free-to-air telecast of gurbani.

The move came after the Bhagwant Mann-led Aam Aadmi Party government on Monday approved an amendment to the British-era Sikh Gurdwaras Act, 1925.

"The amendment they brought is against the law," Dhami said.

"We gave a memorandum to the governor that it is Parliament's prerogative (to bring any amendment to the 1925 Act) and the state does not have jurisdiction on this. The governor said he will examine it according to the Constitution," he said.

In the memorandum submitted by the SGPC delegation to the governor, it has been said that the "interference made by the AAP-led government in Punjab in the Sikh Gurdwaras Act, 1925 is unconstitutional, which should not be allowed".

During their meeting with the governor, the delegation demanded from him to "nullify" the Sikh Gurdwaras (Amendment) Bill, 2023, it said.

The SGPC delegation also included senior vice president Baldev Singh Qaimpur, junior vice president Avtar Singh Raya and general secretary Gurcharan Singh Grewal.

SGPC chief Dhami alleged that the state government is going beyond its jurisdiction and "complicating" Sikh affairs, asserting that the AAP government is "using" the matter of Gurbani broadcast for its "political interests".

He also alleged that the aim of the Mann government is to weaken the SGPC, and said the Sikh community will not allow this to happen.

The SGPC chief said that the governor has been "explained in detail about the unconstitutional act of the Punjab government".

According to the provisions of the Bill, "in the Sikh Gurdwaras Act, 1925, after Section 125, Section 125-A shall be inserted".

"It shall be the duty of the Board (SGPC) to propagate the teachings of the Gurus by making uninterrupted (without any on screen running advertisements or commercials or distortion) live feed (audio as well as video) of holy Gurbani from Sri Harmandir Sahib (Golden Temple) available free of cost to all media houses, outlets, platforms, channels, etc, whoever wishes to broadcast anywhere all over the world..," as per the Bill passed by the House.

Dhami claimed that adding Section 125A was wrong.

Replying to a question, he said in coming days the SGPC will also approach the President and the Union Home Minister over the matter.

Dhami said a special general session of the SGPC would be convened on June 26 to chart out further course of action in the matter.

Replying to another query, he said "question is not of PTC channel. Tomorrow they (govt) will bring more amendments to the (1925) Act".

During a press conference on Wednesday, Governor Purohit who was asked if he will give assent to the Sikh Gurdwaras (Amendment) Bill, said that when it comes before him, he will examine it according to the Constitution.

Speaking during the debate on the Bill in the assembly, Chief Minister Mann had said no channel should have exclusive rights to broadcast the holy Gurbani.

"One channel has the exclusive right to broadcast the holy Gurbani," Mann had said while referring to the PTC channel.

Currently, Gurbani is broadcast from the Sikh shrine by PTC, a private channel often linked to the Shiromani Akali Dal's Badal family.

Mann had said that the Bill aims at "freeing the undue control of a particular family over the rights to telecast sacred Gurbani".

He had said it was a paradoxical situation that the SGPC under the influence of a family that controls its affairs, had given intellectual property rights of telecasting the sacred Gurbani "to a channel owned by them".

The chief minister had said that the Bill is in no way interference in religious affairs, rather it is a simple step to ensure that Gurbani reaches every household.

Mann had earlier said the state government was fully competent to amend this Act.

He reasoned that the Supreme Court had on the issue of a separate gurdwara committee for Haryana ruled that this Act was not an inter-state Act, but a state Act.