6 Delhi ministers seek disqualification of Atishi over alleged ‘sacrilege’

BJP leaders have alleged that Atishi disrupted proceedings to mark the 350th martyrdom anniversary of Guru Tegh Bahadur with remarks they describe as ‘disrespectful‘ – a charge she and her party have denied

Six ministers of the Delhi government have written to the Legislative Assembly Speaker seeking the cancellation of Leader of Opposition Atishi’s membership as an MLA. The move intensifies pressure on the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader, whom Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) members accuse of “committing sacrilege” during House proceedings last week.

The row over Atishi’s alleged remarks led to protests and counter protests, which disrupted proceedings in the recently held Winter Session of Delhi Assembly. (RAJ K RAJ /HT PHOTO)

The controversy erupted on January 6 during a special Assembly discussion to mark the 350th martyrdom anniversary of Guru Tegh Bahadur. BJP legislators allege that Atishi disrupted the proceedings with remarks they describe as “disrespectful” to Sikh Gurus – a charge she and her party have vehemently denied, calling it a politically motivated fabrication.

At a press conference on Tuesday, Delhi culture minister Kapil Mishra alleged that Atishi had gone “missing” since the row erupted to evade accountability.

“The words used during the session amount to sacrilege and constitute a crime and a sin. The incident was recorded and the verbatim transcript of the video was read out by the Speaker in the House on January 7 at 11.30am. No member present objected to the accuracy of the transcript at that time,” Mishra said. He further raised allegations of the “misuse of Punjab government resources,” suggesting AAP’s national convener, Arvind Kejriwal, directed the Punjab Police to file “false cases” to intimidate those raising the issue. Mishra also appealed to Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann to not involve his state’s police in the matter.

He also alleged that Atishi had not attended Assembly proceedings or appeared publicly since the row erupted. He alleged that she had been “instructed” to remain out of public view.

Following days of heated exchanges in the Delhi Assembly over the issue, Speaker Vijender Gupta, on January 8, sent the official video recordings of the January 6 proceedings for an independent forensic audit to ascertain the facts. However, in a parallel development, the Punjab Police in Jalandhar registered an FIR on Friday against Mishraand others for allegedly uploading and circulating “doctored” videos of the incident.

The police action in Jalandhar, meanwhile, has drawn the criticism of Delhi Assembly. The Delhi Assembly secretariat sent a notice to the Punjab Police, stating their FIR was a breach of the legislature’s privilege, as the video is considered property of the House.

Speaker Gupta, on Tuesday, noted that the Punjab Police had requested 10 days to respond to this notice but were granted only three, with a deadline of January 15. Gupta questioned their pace, noting, “The Punjab police claims to have conducted a forensic audit of a video within half a day before they filed an FIR, but they now want 10 days to respond… This clearly seems like a politically motivated attempt at delaying the investigation.”

Meanwhile, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Tuesday stepped up its attack on Delhi cabinet minister Kapil Mishra, demanding a public apology over the alleged “beadbi” (sacrilege) of Sikh Guru Sahibs and calling the act unforgivable.

AAP leader and Delhi unit president Saurabh Bhardwaj said the dignity of the Guru Sahibs could not be compromised for political gain and urged Mishra to atone at the Sri Akal Takht Sahib.

Addressing a press conference, Bhardwaj cited a forensic investigation by the Punjab Police into a controversial video, claiming it had established that the word “Guru” was never spoken by AAP leader Atishi.

“The forensic report makes it clear that the word was not in the original video. Despite this, Kapil Mishra added subtitles referring to the Guru Sahibs. This is a clear act of beadbi. A sitting BJP minister has insulted the Guru Sahibs for dirty politics. The Sikh community across India and abroad is watching,” Bhardwaj said.

He demanded an unconditional apology to the global Sikh community and accused the BJP of shielding leaders facing serious allegations.

“If Kapil Mishra believes he can escape accountability, he is mistaken. The law will take its course,” Bhardwaj said.