Sri Akal Takht Sahib summons all Sikh MLAs, ministers in Punjab on June 29 over anti-sacrilege law
PTC News Desk: Sri Akal Takht Sahib, on Thursday summoned all the Sikh MLAs and ministers in Punjab to appear before it on June 29 and directed non-Sikh legislators and ministers to submit written explanations over the Jagat Jyot Sri Guru Granth Sahib Satkar Act, 2026, which prescribes life imprisonment for sacrilege of the Sikh holy scripture.
The development comes a few months after the Punjab Assembly passed a new law on April 13 that provides strict punishment for cases involving sacrilege of Sri Guru Granth Sahib, including life imprisonment and heavy fines.
According to the directives all the legislators and including Punjab Assembly Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan and cabinet ministers have been ordered to appear before the highest temporal body on June 29.
The summons have been issued to all the legislators cutting across party lines, including Congress MLA Rana Gurjeet Singh, Congress leader Pargat Singh, AAP ministers Harpal Singh Cheema, Harjot Singh Bains, Balbir Singh and Gurmeet Singh Khudian, besides Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan. Non-Sikh ministers Sanjeev Arora, Aman Arora, Barinder Kumar Goyal, Lal Chand Kataruchak and Mahinder Bhagat have been asked to furnish written responses.
The move by Akal Takht Sahib is significant because the Sikh clergy has increasingly intervened in matters involving senior political leaders in Punjab in recent years.
Earlier this month, Akal Takht declared Bhagwant Mann a "Khalsa Panth virodhi" (someone opposed to the interests of the Sikh community) over a viral video linked to an alleged sacrilege issue. However, Mann rejected the allegation, claiming that the video was fabricated and that he did not appear in it.
The latest summonses are expected to add a new dimension to the ongoing political and religious debate surrounding the issue in Punjab.
- PTC NEWS
