E-Paper
Punjab: Sukhbir Badal elected SAD president for the 4th time
Sukhbir had resigned from the post on November 16 last year after being declared a tankhaiya (guilty of religious misconduct) by the Akal Takht, the highest temporal seat of Sikhs, for the mistakes of the party and its government from 2007 to 2017.
Sukhbir Singh Badal was elected the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president unanimously during the delegate meeting of the party, held at Teja Singh Samundri Hall, the headquarters of the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee, at the Golden Temple complex on Saturday. This is the fourth time that he has been elected to the post.
Sukhbir had resigned from the post on November 16 last year after being declared a tankhaiya (guilty of religious misconduct) by the Akal Takht, the highest temporal seat of Sikhs, for the mistakes of the party and its government from 2007 to 2017.
Subsequently, the Akal Takht had pronounced a decree on December 2, calling for a revamp of the party and election of office-bearers within six months. It had also directed the party’s working committee to accept Sukhbir’s resignation.
However, the faction loyal to Sukhbir went ahead with a membership drive under the party working committee, fearing that taking directions from a religious body may lead to the cancellation of the party’s recognition by the Election Commission of India over violation of the Representation of People’s Act.
Sukhbir’s name for Saturday’s elections was proposed by working president Balwinder Singh Bhunder and endorsements were given by Maheshinder Singh Grewal and Paramjit Singh Sarna.
The delegates gave their consent by raising their hands amid chanting of Sikh slogans ‘Sat Sri Akal’.
Several resolutions were also passed during the meeting, including one urging the Akal Takht jathedar to review revocation of Panth Rattan Fakhr-e-Qaum conferred on former party patriarch and five-time CM Parkash Singh Badal posthumously on December 2 last year.
A condolence resolution was passed for Badal and tributes were paid to him.
Apart from over 500 delegates, the party’s rank and file gathered at the SGPC headquarters in big numbers.
Meanwhile, SGPC president Harjinder Singh Dhami skipped the meeting
