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Case of missing saroops: SGPC followed Takht directive, govt overstepping, says Dhami
Dhami’s statement came a day after chief minister Bhagwant Mann accused the SGPC of failing to find the missing saroops and said it was “using the Akal Takht as a shield” to save people close to their “masters”.
Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) president Harjinder Singh Dhami said on Tuesday that the gurdwara body had already taken action against all employees involved in the case of missing saroops, and that the state government had no justification to interfere in what he termed an internal matter of the Sikh community.
Dhami’s statement came a day after chief minister Bhagwant Mann accused the SGPC of failing to find the missing saroops and said it was “using the Akal Takht as a shield” to save people close to their “masters”.
Mann was reacting to the decree issued by the Sikh clergy from Akal Takht, in which they had asked the AAP government to stop meddling in the internal matter of Sikhs or face action in accordance with Panthic traditions.
Addressing mediapersons in Chandigarh, Mann said the FIR was filed after several Sikh bodies demanded a thorough probe to find the missing saroops and asked the gurdwara body to cooperate with the investigation.
Dhami, while addressing the media here, said, “The Punjab government accepted before the high court that the SGPC is a competent institution and is authorised to take action in its administrative matters; the registration of an FIR proves the government’s political intent. By doing so, the government is also challenging the authority of Akal Takht Sahib, and it was the highest Sikh temporal seat itself which, on the basis of the investigation report, directed the SGPC to take action.”
On December 7, Amritsar police registered an FIR against 16 persons, including a former SGPC chief secretary, in connection with the disappearance of the saroops in 2020. On December 22, the state government constituted a six-member special investigation team (SIT) headed by AIG (vigilance), Mohali, Jagatpreet Singh, to probe the matter.
Dhami said this clearly exposes the government’s double standards. “On one hand, the government is acknowledging the SGPC as a competent body authorised to take action, while on the other hand, it is getting an FIR registered on the false pretext of a court order. He termed this a political move by the Mann government, which has made its interference in Sikh affairs evident.
Dhami categorically said that the SGPC is not supporting any accused, and the false propaganda being spread in this regard will not be tolerated. “The resolution through which legal action had earlier been approved was withdrawn in a subsequent resolution, on the advice of experts, and the decision was taken to proceed with action by the SGPC itself,” he further said.
Speaking about chartered accountant Satinder Singh Kohli, who was indicted in the Takht-constituted probe report and is nominated in the FIR, Dhami said that a case for recovery of money is ongoing before the Sikh Gurdwara Judicial Commission, with the next date fixed in January 2026.
