Hola Mohalla rally: SAD breakaway faction sidesteps ‘one family, one ticket’ proposal

The faction refrained from discussing proposals such as “one family, one ticket”, “one leader, one post”, and barring those contesting Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) elections from fighting assembly or Parliament polls and vice versa

The breakaway faction of the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) — SAD (Punar Surjit) — on Tuesday avoided taking up its internal reform proposals during a rally held to mark Hola Mohalla in Anandpur Sahib.

In principle, the vision document is complete and has been announced. We will release the entire proposals to the media later, said faction secretary general Gurpartap Singh Wadala. (HT)

The faction refrained from discussing proposals such as “one family, one ticket”, “one leader, one post”, and barring those contesting Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) elections from fighting assembly or Parliament polls and vice versa.

“We will make the entire document public soon. In principle, the vision document is complete and has been announced. We will release the entire proposals to the media later,” said faction secretary general Gurpartap Singh Wadala.

The proposals had triggered differences within the faction at a meeting held in Chandigarh last month. A section of members opposed especially the restriction on contesting both the SGPC and assembly, arguing that gurdwara body polls have historically served as a launch pad for assembly and parliamentary contests. Leaders also pointed to past instances of party members holding multiple posts or family members contesting from different constituencies simultaneously.

Former MP Prem Singh Chandumajra confirmed that the proposals were not raised at the rally, saying the timing was not appropriate to take up all issues.

Among those who addressed the gathering were Giani Raghbir Singh, former jathedar of the Akal Takht, and faction president Giani Harpreet Singh. Raghbir Singh, who was recently removed by the SGPC as head granthi of the Golden Temple after levelling corruption allegations against the apex gurdwara body, claimed that recovery of ₹8 crore from PTC and ₹7.32 crore from chartered accountant Satinder Singh Kohli remains pending.

The vision document was prepared by former MLA Iqbal Singh Jhundan and finalised by Giani Harpreet Singh. According to Wadala, it includes measures to end family rule and nepotism in the party, limit the party president’s tenure to three years with a maximum of two consecutive terms, strengthen federalism by granting more powers to states, bolster regional parties, seek the release of Sikh detainees, counter the dominance of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), make agriculture remunerative and protect Punjab’s river waters.