A day after Giani Harpreet Singh, acting Jathedar of the Akal Takht — the highest temporal seat of the Sikh religion — said Sikhs were not safe even in India, Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Tuesday said he did not agree with him.
Expressing concern over the remarks, Capt. Amarinder asked the Takht to put pressure on the Shiromani Akali Dal to sever all ties with the ruling alliance at the Centre, which had been unable to ensure a sense of safety among the minorities in the country.
If the Jathedar did feel that way, the Chief Minister said in a statement here, he should take up the matter with the SAD.
“Unlike Pakistan, India has always taken pride in being a secular nation, with no discrimination on religious grounds,” said Capt. Amarinder, adding that any feeling among the Sikh community that they were not secure here was a matter of grave concern. “If Sikhs are feeling insecure, as stated by the Acting Jathedar, then it is the dispensation at the Centre which is to blame,” he said.
Capt. Amarinder said given that the Akalis claim to be the custodians of the Sikh religion and the community, they should take a stand on the issue and SAD chief Sukhbir Badal should also ask his wife Harsimrat Kaur Badal to resign immediately as Union Minister.
Capt. Amarinder said while some incidents here and there could not be construed to be a case of Sikhs not being safe in India, the perception was as important as reality. “The Sikhs had lived through a very dark period in the 1980s and any feeling of being at the receiving end in any way would revive their sense of fear, which would be detrimental to the community’s interest as well as that of the nation.”
