Akal Takht panel flags Punjab govt response, seeks compliance report on anti-sacrilege law
NEW DELHI: The expert panel appointed by the Akal Takht on Friday asked the Punjab government to first submit a compliance report on the objections raised by the Sikh temporal seat before any further talks on the proposed anti-sacrilege law.The panel, formed to discuss the Jaagat Jot Sri Guru Granth Sahib Satkar (Amendment) Act, 2026 with the state government, held its first meeting on Thursday.The panel said the Punjab government’s July 29 response did not address the main concerns raised by the Akal Takht, especially those related to possible interference in Sikh religious matters.On June 29, Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Kuldip Singh Gargajj had given the state government one month to respond to his objections to the anti-sacrilege law.In a statement on Friday, the Akal Takht secretariat said the government’s response, submitted just before the deadline, was an attempt to avoid the main issues. It said the concerns of the Sikh community had already been conveyed to the Punjab assembly Speaker and members of the state Cabinet on July 31.The secretariat also accused the Bhagwant Mann-led government of not taking a constructive approach towards resolving the sensitive issue. It said that despite being given enough time, the Punjab government had not formed its own panel to discuss the matter.Earlier, Jathedar Gargajj had rejected the government’s response as “unsatisfactory” and announced a five-member expert panel to hold discussions with the Aam Aadmi Party government.
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The panel includes retired judges Rupinder Singh Sodhi and Mohinder Mohan Singh Bedi, senior advocate Puran Singh Hundal, and Sikh scholars Dr Kehar Singh and Prof Jagmohan Singh.The Jathedar had also written to Punjab assembly Speaker Kultar Singh, Sikh MLAs and state ministers, asking them not to discuss or amend the anti-sacrilege law without a wider “Panthic” consensus.He had directed Sikh MLAs and Cabinet ministers to ensure that no discussion on the law takes place during the assembly session that began on August 3 until an agreement is reached with the Akal Takht and the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC).The issue came up after AAP MLA Inderbir Singh Nijjar submitted the Punjab government’s response to the objections raised by the Akal Takht over the proposed anti-sacrilege legislation.
