SAD (A) to lead Hoshiarpur caravan to Amritsar protest on International Democracy Day over SGPC polls

Hoshiarpur/Daljeet Ajnoha/Sept.2

Shiromani Akali Dal (Amritsar) has announced that a large caravan of Sikh devotees (sangats) from Hoshiarpur will join its protest in Amritsar on September 15, International Democracy Day, to demand fresh elections to the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC).

Party’s charge: SGPC being held under “Hindutva” influence, elections delayed since 2016

At a special meeting in Hoshiarpur’s Hotel Presidency, district president Gurnam Singh Singriwala told reporters that the SGPC—described by the party as the “Sikh community’s parliament”—has not held elections since its last poll in 2011, with the house’s term ending in 2016. He alleged that the Narendra Modi-led central government, acting in league with “Hindutva forces” and the Badal-line Akalis, has ignored Sikh sentiments and allowed a faction to forcibly retain control of the SGPC management.

Singriwala said the community will not tolerate this situation and will pressurise the Centre to hold SGPC elections, framing the issue as a matter of Sikh democratic rights.

Call for panthic unity against “anti-Punjab” policies

Leaders Sandeep Singh Khalsa (Tanda), Kulveer Singh (Maujipur) and Harvinder Singh Heera jointly said that while SAD (A) chief Simranjit Singh Mann has long stressed panthic unity, other groups are not serious about it—a situation they termed “serious and sad” for Sikhs and Punjab. They accused the BJP-led central government of continuously mistreating Sikhs and Punjabis, and said panthic forces must unite to give a “befitting response”.

Senior social worker and headmaster Jarnail Singh Dheer was specially present; Rajvinder Kaur Dhadda, Fateh Singh, Parmjeet Singh Mintu, Ashok Kumar Bhagowal, Gurdev Singh Munna, Kulwant Singh Dhakkowal and others also attended.

Context: Long-standing demand for SGPC elections

The demand for SGPC polls is not new. SAD (A) has previously held protests in Amritsar’s Heritage Street near the Golden Temple, submitting memoranda to the UN and arguing that, while India’s Lok Sabha has seen 17 general elections since 1952, the SGPC has held only eight under the Union Home Ministry’s control. In recent months, Mann has again highlighted the delay, claiming SGPC elections have not been held for nearly 15 years and calling for time-bound, democratic polls.

The party’s planned September 15 demonstration in Amritsar will thus dovetail with its broader push—linking the International Democracy Day symbolism to its demand that the Centre restore what it calls the “hard-won democracy of the Sikhs” through regular SGPC elections.