Senior Akali Dal leader Sukhbir Badal today objected to the proposed auction of a model of Golden Temple gifted to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying it was a "sacred symbol of the gift and blessings of the Akal Purakh and the Guru Sahibs and auctioning it would be grossly disrespectful".
"It would also hurt the religious sentiments of the Sikh community," he added in a post on X, formerly Twitter.
The model is part of the fifth e-auction of gifts received by PM Modi and started earlier this month. Also going under the hammer are replicas of the Sun Temple in Gujarat's Modhera, the Vijay Stambh of Chittorgarh and a painting of a ghat of Varanasi. altogether 900 items will be auctioned, some of which have been displayed at the National Gallery of Modern Arts.
Declaring he was "deeply saddened" by the inclusion of the "sacred model of the Sachkhand Sri Harmandir Sahib" he said it was presented to PM Modi by the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee.
"This model was presented as a sacred symbol of the gift and blessings of the Akal Purakh and the Guru Sahibs... My humble request to the Prime Minister to stop this auction immediately. If the government feels unable to handle this sacred and priceless gift, then I request that this sacred symbol be kindly handed back to the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee," his post read.
The Prime Minister had announced the exhibition on X, saying the objects on display are a "testament to the rich culture, tradition and artistic heritage of India".
"Starting today, an exhibition at NGMA will display a wide range of gifts and mementoes given to me over the recent past. Presented to me during various programmes and events across India, they are a testament to the rich culture, tradition and artistic heritage of India," he had posted on October 2.