CM Mann announced free telecast of Gurbani, Akali Dal and SGPC said this

Punjab News: The Punjab Cabinet on Monday approved amendments to the British-era Sikh Gurdwara Act to ensure free live telecast of Gurbani from the Golden Temple in Amritsar. Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann said that a bill in this regard will be introduced on Tuesday, the second day of the two-day session of the Punjab Legislative Assembly. Currently, Gurbani from the Golden Temple is broadcast by ‘PTC’, a private channel often linked to the Badal family of the Shiromani Akali Dal.

SGPC opposed the government’s decision
The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), the apex religious body of the Sikhs, opposed the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government’s move, saying the 1925 Act is a central law and can only be amended by Parliament. Punjab Chief Minister Mann, however, said that the state government was fully competent to amend the Act as the Supreme Court had already ruled on the issue of a separate Gurdwara Committee for Haryana that the Act was not an inter-state act. , is rather a State Act.

Sikh Gurdwara Act Amendment
According to an official statement, Chief Minister Mann said that the state cabinet has decided to amend the Sikh Gurdwara Act by adding Section 125A, making it the responsibility of the SGPC to conduct the holy Gurbani from Sri Harmandir Sahib (Golden Temple) ‘free of cost’. Make sure to broadcast live. Mann said that this amendment has been approved with the aim that the entire humanity can listen and watch the live broadcast of Gurbani for free.

Dhami condemned the verdict
Meanwhile, SGPC chief Harjinder Singh Dhami strongly condemned the AAP government’s move on Monday. Dhami told the media in Amritsar that any amendment to the Act can only be done by the central government through Parliament under the recommendations of the SGPC’s ‘General House’. He alleged that Bhagwant Mann wanted to “please” his party’s leadership in Delhi and claimed that “religious matters of Sikhs were being politicised”.

Akali Dal also protested
Shiromani Akali Dal also targeted the AAP government for this step. SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal called it a “direct attack on the sect”. However, Mann claimed that the decision was in line with the sentiments of the ‘Sikh Sangat’ across the world. The Chief Minister called it the need of the hour to spread ‘Sarab Sanjhi Gurbani’ across the world with the aim of spreading the universal message of ‘welfare of all’. Mann said that the new Act will be called the Sikh Gurdwara Act, 2023 and it will come into force from the date of its publication in the official gazette.

CM Mann’s question to Badal
The Chief Minister said that as per the Act it would be the duty of the Board (SGPC) to propagate the teachings of the Gurus by making live feed (audio and video) of Gurbani uninterrupted (without any advertisement/advertisement/distortion) from Sri Harmandir Sahib Make it available free of cost to all media houses, establishments, forums, channels etc., whosoever want to broadcast it. Mann said that as a humble and religious Sikh, he is in favor of ‘free-to-air’ broadcasting of Gurbani across the world. Mann said, “Sukhbir Singh Badal should clarify whether he is opposing this move as SAD chief or as the owner of that channel. The Chief Minister said that for long the affairs of the SGPC have been dominated by one family, which has caused irreparable damage to the Sikh Panth.

Why Gurbani was not broadcast free to air
He alleged, “This family, while playing dirty games, tried to capitalize on the religious sentiments of Sikhs by giving their channel exclusive broadcast rights of Gurbani, while there was no mention of the word broadcast in the Act of 1925.” Mann said, ‘The rights to broadcast Gurbani from Harmandir Sahib were bought in 2012 for a period of 11 years. When we raised the issue that why Gurbani is not being broadcast ‘free to air’, SGPC said that tenders will be called. He said that the agreement with the channel is ending in July, 2023. He said that we have consulted top lawyers so that the existing agreement is not repeated for another decade.

Even after the removal of Jathedar Giani Harpreet Singh, he said
SGPC chief Dhami said that Bhagwant Singh Mann should talk about the development of the state as the Chief Minister of Punjab instead of being the ‘Subedar’ of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. Dhami said that after the termination of Gurbani broadcast rights with G-Next Media (PTC channel) in July this year, the SGPC sub-committee is working on further arrangements in this regard, whose “fruitful” results would be out soon. Will. Chief Minister Mann said that SGPC elections have not been held in the last 11 years. He said that it is surprising that the ‘Acting President of SGPC’ is removing the acting Jathedar of Shri Akal Takht Sahib just because he is ‘behaving like a particular family’. are not.

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