Amritpal meets Jathedar over using Guru Granth Sahib as a shield
After the meeting at the Akal Takht secretariat, Amritpal said, “My meeting with Jathedar shouldn’t be sensationalized. This meeting was about Panthic issues and Sikh youth. Such meetings on current affairs of Punjab should be held regularly.”
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Amritsar, Mar 04: Facing flak for using the bir of the Guru Granth Sahib allegedly as a shield during the Ajnala clash, Waris Punjab De chief Amritpal Singh met Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Harpreet Singh in Amritsar on Friday. Their closed-door meeting went on for around one and a half hours.
After the meeting at the Akal Takht secretariat, Amritpal said, “My meeting with Jathedar shouldn’t be sensationalized. This meeting was about Panthic issues and Sikh youth. Such meetings on current affairs of Punjab should be held regularly.”
“The meeting was held in a very good environment. It was an informal meeting. No strategy was discussed. I had come to the Akal Takht many times in the past but we couldn’t meet then. Today he was available,” said Amritpal. The radical Sikh preacher also said the discussion was not about the committee formed by the Jathedar on whether the bir of the Guru Granth Sahib should be used in protests or not. Giani Harpreet Singh has not issued any statement on his meeting with Amritpal, which was held on a day when he was busy with a meeting of Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) members, called to discuss the issue of the Haryana Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (HSGMC). The meeting comes days after Shiromani Akali Dal’s Delhi president Paramjit Singh Sarna openly targeted the Jathedar. The Akali Dal controls the SGPC, which is the authority appointing the Akal Takht Jathedar. On the day of the Ajnala clash, when SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal came down heavily on Amritpal for “using the bir as a shield”, the Jathedar wrote a Facebook post that was deemed soft on the radical leader. Though he didn’t name Amritpal, the Jathedar wrote, “If someone leads a struggle against oppression or the violation of human rights or Sikh rights, he or she should be extended support directly or indirectly. The blessing of the Guru Granth Sahib is also required here. As long as there is Khadsha of any effect on the respect of the Guru Granth Sahib, we must consider it and take inspiration from history.”
Sources said that his meeting with Jathedar had given a boost to Amritpal, who has been facing opposition from many Sikh bodies and leaders since the Ajnala clash. The acting Jathedar had given an indirect statement against Amritpal when the latter was caught in a tussle with Christian missionaries. Amritpal had responded to it.
