Senior advocate and former Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA from Ludhiana’s Dakha HS Phoolka on Friday released a video message, calling Punjab-based Panthic and splinter Akali groups to “fight together for common issues” concerning the Sikh community.
Phoolka, who has been fighting for justice to 1984 anti-Sikh riot victims, referred to a meeting called by the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on the Sikh prisoners’ issue in Delhi on Thursday, which was also attended and supported by Badals’ bête noire and former Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (DSGMC) president Paramjit Singh Sarna.
“Sarna’s attending the meeting called by the SAD (Badal) is a very positive development. He rightly laid emphasis on the need of a coordination committee (to push for release of Sikh prisoners languishing in prisons even after completion of their jail term). I have also been saying that we should evolve issue-based strategy. We should fight together for common issues,” said Phoolka in his video message.
Phoolka also referred to the thawing of relations between the SAD and former DSGMC president Manjit Singh GK, who was expelled from the party. “Both (Sarna and GK) clarified that they are not with Badals, and said they will get together on the issues of community. This is a nice approach… Now, when Badals have become flexible after the historic debacle (in Punjab assembly elections), we should refrain from just boycotting them, but adopt the strategy that has been adopted by GK and Sarna. We may be against Badals, not SAD. We should avert the situation in which the Sikh qaum (community) suffers loss from the act of derailing Badals,” said Phoolka.
{{/usCountry}}Phoolka also referred to the thawing of relations between the SAD and former DSGMC president Manjit Singh GK, who was expelled from the party. “Both (Sarna and GK) clarified that they are not with Badals, and said they will get together on the issues of community. This is a nice approach… Now, when Badals have become flexible after the historic debacle (in Punjab assembly elections), we should refrain from just boycotting them, but adopt the strategy that has been adopted by GK and Sarna. We may be against Badals, not SAD. We should avert the situation in which the Sikh qaum (community) suffers loss from the act of derailing Badals,” said Phoolka.
{{/usCountry}}GK had recently supported the SAD after new DSGMC president Harmeet Singh Kalka took over the possession of the party’s office at Gurdwara Rakab Ganj Sahib in Delhi. GK said that he was not averse to joining hands with anyone for the sake of Panthic issues, while clarifying that “we are not going to merge with the SAD (Badal) because I have my own party JAGO”.
In March, the SAD saw its worst electoral performance in the Punjab elections, winning just three seats while both its president Sukhbir Singh Badal and patriarch Parkash Singh Badal lost by huge margins. Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa, who heads the splinter group SAD (Sanyukt), recently expressed concern over discord within the Panth, while asking Badals to show “humility” and step down from active politics.