NEW DELHI: Punjab Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Baltej Singh Pannu on Monday accused the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and the Badal family of using revered Sikh institutions for political gain, saying they were “dragging” them into a political battle in a bid to regain public trust.Pannu made the remarks while responding to recent claims by Akal Takht Jathedar Kuldeep Singh Gargajj, who said that a controversial video circulating on social media, allegedly showing chief minister Bhagwant Mann, had been found “authentic” by two forensic laboratories and was neither AI-generated nor tampered with.Reacting to the forensic claim, Pannu questioned its conclusions and said the report did not establish the identity of the person in the footage.“The report nowhere states who the person visible in the video actually is. Even if we accept the claim that the video was not generated through AI, the Jathedar must explain what the height of the individual seen in the video is,” he said.“Does the height of CM Mann match the height of the person visible in the footage? Which hotel room is it where photographs of Guru Sahib are displayed, as is being claimed? The report has completely failed to establish who is actually visible in the video,” Pannu told reporters. He said the Aam Aadmi Party would soon present the “complete truth” before the public and expose every aspect of the controversy.Pannu also alleged that the SAD and the Badal family were attempting to control or influence Sikh institutions for political purposes, stressing that the Akal Takht belonged to the entire Sikh community.“Sri Akal Takht Sahib belongs to the entire Panth across the world, not to Sukhbir Badal or the Shiromani Akali Dal. “The Jathedar Sahib was appointed in the middle of the night at the behest of Sukhbir Badal without consulting Sikh sects or organisations, and at a place where there was not even Parkash of Sri Guru Granth Sahib,” he alleged.He further pointed to a statement by Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) president Harjinder Singh Dhami, describing himself as a soldier of Sukhbir Badal, calling it evidence of politicisation of Sikh institutions.Referring to the 2015 sacrilege incidents in Faridkot, Pannu accused the SAD leadership of failing to act at the time.He said the “sacred ‘bir’ of Sri Guru Granth Sahib was stolen from Burj Jawahar Singh Wala in 2015. Sikhs were challenged through offensive posters and later the holy parts of Guru Sahib were found scattered in garbage heaps”.“At that time, Sukhbir Badal and his associates, who repeatedly came to power wearing the mask of Panthic politics, remained asleep,” he alleged.Pannu said the SAD was now unable to accept the Mann government’s actions, including a strict anti-sacrilege law.“The Badal family, which considered itself the sole custodian of Panthic interests, is unable to digest this strict law,” he said.“In its frustration, it has now played its last political card and, unfortunately, has fielded the Jathedar of Sri Akal Takht Sahib as a pawn in its political battle. However, the intelligent and aware people of Punjab will never allow such designs to succeed,” he added.He also said the SAD and Badal family were attempting to regain relevance after losing public trust, while accusing them of undermining Sikh institutions in the process.
