File Picture of Punjab Chief Minister
Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal today said he had cancelled a planned congregation of the Sikhs in Amritsar on July 27 to oppose the Haryana government's plans for a parallel Shiromani Gurudwara Parbandhak Committee, or the SGPC, following a truce call by Akal Takht, the highest Sikh religious body.
"We will obey Akal Takht, we have to follow their directions. Our workers were on their way to the venue but they are now been asked to stop," Mr Badal, who is also the President of the Akali Dal, told NDTV.
Akal Takht had directed that the planned Sikh congregations by the ruling Akali Dal in Amritsar and another rally in Karnal in Haryana be called off. (
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The Akal Takth had said that the situation in Saharanpur, where two people were killed in violent clashes over a disputed piece of land, warranted that people concentrate on bringing peace in the UP town. (
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"We have put no pressure on the central government on this issue, but we firmly believe SGPC should not be bifurcated," Mr Badal, whose party is a member of the ruling National Democratic Alliance at the Centre, said.
He said that his party would meet and discuss the issue with Akal Takht but insisted that the religious body or the Centre must intervene to resolve the issue.
"SGPC is not a market or municipal committee... it's an institution for which we have sacrificed," he added.