The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) today slammed Congress MP Rahul Gandhi for claiming that Abhay Mudra also exists in the Sikh religion. Several key announcements were made after a meeting of SGPC in Amritsar, and after the meeting, SGPC president Harjinder Singh Dhami held a press conference announcing the decisions.
Dhami condemned Rahul Gandhi for claiming in Lok Sabha that the Abhay Mudra, associated with Hinduism and Buddhism, is present in religions, including Islam, Christianity and Sikhism. The SGPC president said that they have taken strict notice of the comments made by Rahul Gandhi.
The official 𝕏 handle of SGPC tweeted, “Strict notice of Rahul Gandhi’s statement in Parliament of linking Abhaya Mudra to Sri Guru Nanak Dev”.
ਸੰਸਦ ’ਚ ਰਾਹੁਲ ਗਾਂਧੀ ਵੱਲੋਂ ਅਭਯ ਮੁਦਰਾ ਨੂੰ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਗੁਰੂ ਨਾਨਕ ਦੇਵ ਜੀ ਨਾਲ ਜੋੜਨ ਦਾ ਲਿਆ ਸਖ਼ਤ ਨੋਟਿਸ
— Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (@SGPCAmritsar) July 5, 2024
Strict notice of Rahul Gandhi's statement in Parliament of linking Abhaya Mudra to Sri Guru Nanak Dev@VPIndia @ombirlakota @RahulGandhi pic.twitter.com/kA3qwX7Cc9
The SGPC also strongly objected to Rahul Gandhi holding a picture of Guru Nanak during his reply to the motion of thanks to the president’s address in Lok Sabha. Dhami said that the Gurbani and teachings of the Gurus should not be made part of political debates without full knowledge. He added that Rahul Gandhi’s claim that Abhay Mudra is mentioned in Sikhism is completely wrong.
Yoga in Darbar Sahib
Regarding its police complaint against Archana Makwana for performing Yoga inside Golden Temple premises, saying that they will never forgive her. Harjinder Singh Dhami said that mistakes can be forgiven, not mischief. He reiterated that the influencer doing Yoga in Sri Darbar Sahib Prakrama on International Yoga Day on 21 June has hurt Sikh sentiments, and they will take action against her.
Dhami said, “Many people have given their opinion on this incident and she has also sent a written apology. But every religious place has its own rules and deliberate actions are not forgivable.”
Dhami added that there is nothing wrong in doing Yoga but Sri Harmandir Sahib is not a tourist destination. He further said that Archana Makwana would be punished as per law, indicating they would pursue the case against her. Notably, Makwana has asked the SGPC to withdraw the case saying she did nothing wrong, and added that she is ready for a legal battle if the case is not withdrawn.
In this regard, the SGPC announced that they will soon formulate rules regarding photography and videography in Sri Harmandir Sahib. But till that is done, all videography in the premises has been banned with immediate effect. Dhami said that immediate orders have been issued to ban any artist or actor from doing videography in Sri Harmandir Sahib for their promotion.
ਸੱਚਖੰਡ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਹਰਿਮੰਦਰ ਸਾਹਿਬ ਵਿਖੇ ਦੋ ਨਵੇਂ ਗ੍ਰੰਥੀ ਸਿੰਘ ਸਾਹਿਬਾਨ ਨਿਯੁਕਤ
— Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (@SGPCAmritsar) July 5, 2024
-ਰਾਜਸਥਾਨ ’ਚ ਪ੍ਰੀਖਿਆ ਦੌਰਾਨ ਕਕਾਰ ਲਹਾਉਣ ਵਾਲੇ ਅਧਿਕਾਰੀਆਂ ਅਤੇ ਕੰਗਨਾ ਰਣੌਤ ਖਿਲਾਫ਼ ਹੋਵੇ ਪਰਚਾ ਦਰਜ-ਐਡਵੋਕੇਟ ਹਰਜਿੰਦਰ ਸਿੰਘ ਧਾਮੀ
-ਸੰਸਦ ’ਚ ਰਾਹੁਲ ਗਾਂਧੀ ਵੱਲੋਂ ਅਭਯ ਮੁਦਰਾ ਨੂੰ ਪਹਿਲੇ ਪਾਤਸ਼ਾਹ ਨਾਲ ਜੋੜਨ ਦਾ ਲਿਆ ਸਖ਼ਤ ਨੋਟਿਸ
-ਦਲ ਖ਼ਾਲਸਾ ਦੇ ਆਗੂ… pic.twitter.com/cn6fujJ0aA
The gurdwara body is also recruiting 100 persons under the task force for deployment in the Parkarma of the Harmandir Sahib and other gurdwaras. Notably, SGPC has taken action against three Sevadars deployed at the Parkarma for not stopping Archana Makwana from doing Yoga.
Demands FIR on Kangana Ranaut
The SGPC also demanded an FIR against Actor-MP Kangana Ranaut over the Chandigarh airport incident where she was slapped by a female CISF constable. Harjinder Singh Dhami said that while Kulwinder Kaur has been transferred, no action was taken against Kangana Ranaut. He said that the Punjab government should register a case against Kangana for spreading hatred against Punjabis.
The SGPC also adopted a resolution against preventing Amritdhari Sikh candidates from carrying kirpan at a judicial exam centre in Rajasthan’s Jodhpur.
Condols death of plane hijacker
The SGPC press conference started with condoling the death of Khalistani terrorist Gajinder Singh. The committee also passed a resolution in the meeting ‘paying respect to the struggling life and sacrifice of Bhai Gajinder Singh, who lived in exile for a long time’.
Dal Khalsa founder and patron Gajinder Singh Khalsa died of a heart attack at a hospital in Pakistan on Thursday. Khalsa was one of the five men who hijacked the Indian Airlines flight IC-423 which took off from Delhi’s Palam airport for Srinagar on September 29, 1981. They said that deep sorrow was expressed in the meeting over the death of Bhai Gajinder Singh, calling him ‘one of the leading Panchs who founded the Dal Khalsa’.
They had hijacked the Indian Airlines flight with 111 passengers and 6 crew members on board, and forced the plane to land in Lahore to seek the release of several Khalistani extremists, including Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale. The hijackers were arrested and sentenced to jail in Pakistan. They were released in 1994, and while two of the hijackers returned to India, the other 3 including Gajinder Singh Khalsa remained in Pakistan.
