Pressure mounting, Akalis again call working committee meeting

CHANDIGARH: Three days after the Akal Takht Jathedar asked Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) to activate the Akal Takht-ordered seven-member panel for supervising the party's membership drive, SAD called a meeting of its working committee on Friday to "review the distribution of booklets" for the party's ongoing membership drive, as well as "feedback from observers posted for the same".
The move came amid mounting pressure from dissidents and Sikh groups on SAD to follow Akal Takht directives of Dec 2. In a written statement, SAD leader Daljit Singh Cheema said in its meeting, SAD working committee would also discuss the desecration of a statue of B R Ambedkar in Amritsar on Jan 26.
Cheema said the meeting, which would be held at the party's headquarters in Chandigarh, would be presided over by working president Balwinder Singh Bhunder, who is also the chairman of SAD parliamentary board. "It would also focus on ways and means to get all bogus votes registered for the shiromani committee election deleted. It would also discuss the political situation in the state, including the state of lawlessness and abrogation of all duties by chief minister Bhagwant Mann," he said.
On Wednesday, Cheema had tried to yet again downplay demands from dissenters, saying the Jathedar had wanted the seven-member committee to supervise the membership drive. "The observers we have appointed are basically supervisors only," he had said.
SAD working committee has named six of the seven members of the committee as observers at different places. A majority of them have, however, refused to be a part of the SAD drive.
'Ignoring orders of Singh Sahibans'
On the other hand, dissident Akali leader Gurpartap Singh Wadala, a member of the seven-member panel, and another committee member, Santa Singh Umaidpuri, in a joint statement on Thursday, said SAD was ignoring the orders of the Singh Sahibans (Sikh high priests). "The seven-member committee was constituted by the five Singh Sahibans and the right to expand it also vests with five Singh Sahibans. While expanding the committee, representatives of Sikh organisations, prominent personalities, and other leaders who go by the Akali Dal ideology should be included."
Wadala and Umaidpuri stated that they would meet Takht Damdama Sahib suspended jathedar Giani Harpreet Singh, requesting him to clarify the entire situation by explaining the significance of hukamnamas. Accusing SAD of "ignoring the orders of Singh Sahibans", they added they would also "apprise" Giani Sultan Singh, jathedar of Takht Keshgarh Sahib, about the prevailing situation.
Wadala and Umaidpuri accused SAD leadership of "enacting a drama to adjust all members of the committee [in the party's membership drive] in a twisted manner". They slammed Akali Dal for "side-lining the seven-member committee and instead starting the membership drive by appointing their own observers".
The duo stated that in the hukamnamas, the Akal Takht Jathedar "clearly said that this leadership of Akali Dal lost the moral right to lead". "That is why Akal Takht formed the seven-member committee under whose supervision the new enrolment of Akali Dal was to begin. The committee was asked to set up a new organisational structure and hold an election to elect a new president," they said.
SAD started its month-long membership drive as per the party constitution on Jan 20. As per the schedule, the new SAD president is to be elected on March 1.
Dissident Akali leaders have been accusing SAD of not following the December 2 Akal Takht directions in toto, wherein the highest seat of temporal authority of the Sikhs tasked a seven-member interim committee for Akali Dal's membership drive. The committee, headed by SGPC president Harjinder Singh Dhami, is yet to hold its first meeting. Wadala and Umaidpuri added: "Though Singh Sahib (read Akal Takht Jathedar) said that this committee stands and only it will carry out the drive, SAD has not recognised the seven-member committee."