The Supreme Court on Tuesday dismissed a plea seeking a national holiday on the 10th Sikh guru Guru Gobind Singh’s birth anniversary, which is celebrated as ‘Prakash Parv’.
A bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta said it was not inclined to entertain the plea of All India Shiromani Singh Sabha, which also sought directions to issue “specific guidelines for declaration of public or gazetted holiday” in the country.
“Dismissed. Detailed order will come,” the bench said.
Senior advocate Vikas Singh, appearing for the petitioner organisation, submitted that at present there is no policy and there should be some certainty on how a public holiday is to be decided.
During the hearing, Justice Mehta remarked that there are already many religious holidays in India and, “Let’s not add to holidays”.
The petition sought appropriate directions to the Centre to “declare the 10th Sikh Guru ‘Guru Gobind Singh Ji’ Prakash Parv as Gazetted/Public Holiday to be observed all over India including but not restricted to the States/Union Territories of India in which the Sikhs have significant population as well as in the States which is connected to the life and activities of Tenth Sikh Guru - Guru Gobind Singh Ji”.
The plea said that in the “absence of any guiding principles of any authority regarding declaration of gazetted holiday in India, the executives at the behest of political groups who are in government, declare the holidays at their whims and fancies, serving the political purpose of appeasement of a particular section of the public”.
{{/usCountry}}The plea said that in the “absence of any guiding principles of any authority regarding declaration of gazetted holiday in India, the executives at the behest of political groups who are in government, declare the holidays at their whims and fancies, serving the political purpose of appeasement of a particular section of the public”.
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