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AMRITSAR: The five Sikh high priests pronounced Monday their punishment or tankhah for Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president and former Punjab deputy CM Sukhbir Singh Badal and other politicians of the party, three months after he was declared tankhaiya, meaning guilty of religious misconduct.
The priests, led by Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Raghbir Singh, directed Sukhbir to perform various acts of public penance outside the Clock Tower at Golden Temple and at other key Sikh shrines for two days each wearing sewadar attire and a placard with Gurbani verses. Due to his fractured foot, he may perform these duties in a wheelchair. He must also spend one hour cleaning utensils in the langar hall, listen to kirtan, and recite Sukhmani Sahib.
The clergy also imposed punishments on other SAD politicians, including former ministers Sucha Singh Langah, Hira Singh Gabria, Balwinder Singh Bhundar, Daljit Singh Cheema, and Gulzar Singh Ranike.
The Akal Takht Jathedar announced the punishment for “mistakes” committed during SAD’s tenure in office from 2007 to 2017, including the 2015 sacrilege cases and the pardon granted to Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh in a 2007 blasphemy case.
The Fakhr-e-Qaum (pride of the community) title conferred on former Punjab CM and Sukhbir’s father Parkash Singh Badal was revoked posthumously, casting a shadow on his legacy.
The priests called for a restructuring of SAD. A committee, led by Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) president Harjinder Singh Dhami, has been formed to oversee a new enrolment process within the party. Although the punishment imposes no explicit political bar, it leaves Sukhbir’s political fate open to the people’s court.
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