In Hola Mohalla address, Giani Gargaj urges Sikhs to unite, announces Panthic Lehar 

Newly installed Takht Sri Kesgarh Sahib jathedar Giani Kuldeep Singh Gargaj, who was also recently appointed acting jathedar of Akal Takht, on Saturday reiterated his appeal for the Sikh community to unite and announced the launch of a Panthic Lehar (unity wave) from Baisakhi (April 13).

In his brief address as jathedar (head priest) during the Hola Mohalla celebrations at Anandpur Sahib, Giani Gargaj, 40, said: “The Panthic Lehar will be launched from Baisakhi and we will begin with poor Sikh families. The elaborate plan for carrying out the campaign will be declared very shortly. I’m a mere sewadar of the Sikhs, not the jathedar of the Takht. I will work for the unity of the community.”

He called upon Sikh organisations, including nihang sampardays, kar sewa babas, missionary colleges, the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), the Damdami Taksal and deras (sects), to stand united for the betterment of the community members living worldwide.

“There are many references in Sikh history that when we are united as a community, we have prospered. Let us learn from the past,” he said.

After his address passed off smoothly, Sikh organisation members and nihangs, who had threatened to scuttle Giani Gargaj’s installation, peacefully took out the traditional procession, a custom started in the late 17th century during the time of Guru Gobind Singh, the 10th Sikh Guru. The march marked the conclusion of the three-day Hola Mohalla celebrations that began on Thursday.

Controversial start

Amid objections to his appointment by nihangs and Sikh seminary Damdami Taksal, Giani Gargaj had assumed charge as the Takht Sri Kesgarh Sahib jathedar at 2.50am, seven hours before schedule, last Monday. He announced that the December 2 edicts of the Akal Takht, issued in accordance of ‘Gurmat (teachings of Sikh Gurus)’, remain unalterable. He warned all parties to refrain from making inflammatory statements on the matter and said while the edicts included a directive for Panthic unity, neither of the involved parties took any initiative toward its implementation. Moving forward, he said, the claims of the concerned parties would be reviewed to ensure that the edicts are acted upon.

Pronouncing religious punishment for Shiromani Akali Dal leaders, including Sukhbir Singh Badal, for “mistakes” committed by the SAD and its government in Punjab from 2007-17, Akal Takht had last December formed a committee for launching a membership drive of the party and holding elections for the post of party president and other office-bearers within six months.

On March 7, the SGPC appointed Giani Gargaj as the jathedar of Takht Kesgarh Sahib and announced that he would also serve as the acting jathedar of the Akal Takht, the highest temporal seat of the Sikhs, after removing Giani Raghbir Singh from the post of Akal Takht jathedar and Giani Sultan Singh as the jathedar of Takht Kesgarh Sahib. The decision of the SGPC executive committee to remove the duo drew condemnation from Sikh, Akali and other political leaders, including SAD leader Bikram Singh Majithia.

CM, wife pay obeisance

Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann and his wife Gurpreet Kaur offered prayers at Takht Sri Kesgarh Sahib during Hola Mohalla celebrations on Friday. The festival symbolises Guru Gobind Singh’s ideology and the endeavour to infuse the undying spirit of well-being (Chardi Kala). The festival celebrates the martial spirit of Punjabis in general, and the Sikh community in particular.

Anandpur Sahib, founded in 1665 by the ninth Sikh Guru Tegh Bahadur, who sacrificed his life to uphold human dignity and human rights, inspires Punjabis to fight against tyranny, oppression and injustice, besides cementing the ethos of communal harmony and brotherhood.