Not supposed to make a list of mistakes, Guru knows all: Badal
THREE-DAY EVENT ENDS Former chief minister tells media he will apologise to whomever it asks
AMRITSAR : Refusing to speak on politics and to specify mistakes for the atonement of which the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) had organised an Akhand Path at the Akal Takht, party patriarch and former five-time Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal said, on Monday, “The Guru knows our mistakes very well.” He added that they (the SAD) did not need to specify the mistakes publicly.
Badal’s son, SAD president and former deputy chief minister, Sukhbir Singh Badal, left the Golden Temple after the ‘bhog’ (conclusion) of the ‘Path’. The only words Sukhbir uttered were ‘Path Karea Karo’ (Recite gurbani).
Badal, party spokesperson Daljit Singh Cheema, and media adviser to Badal, Harcharan Bains, addressed the media at the information office of the shrine.
Queried again on the mistakes over their 10-year rule, Badal said, “I was not supposed to give the Guru Sahib a list of the mistakes. The Guru Sahib is present among us and knows everything without specifying. The Guru Sahib always forgives their servants.”
He added, “The SAD is the jathebandi (organisation) of the Khalsa Panth and it follows the path shown by the Guru Sahib... it was a three-day religious programme the party chalked out to seek forgiveness for inadvertent mistakes that the SAD or the SGPC committed.”
‘SAD HERE ONLY FOR SERVICE’
Badal did not respond to queries on issues such as the Bargari sacrilege.
“This was a religious practice and is not an occasion to talk politics. We speak on political issues throughout the year. On this occasion, we don’t want to make this practice political. Our party had decided to only do sewa (service) on these three days.” He did not respond to a pointed query on whether the SAD will ever seek support of the Dera Sacha Sauda.
“We are here to apologise to the sangat (devotees) with folded hands. I would apologise to whomever you ask. I also seek forgiveness from the media fraternity,” he added.
On a query on expelled taksali leaders including MP Ranjit Singh Brahmpura, Badal claimed that he did not know why they had gone against the SAD.
“I appeal to all to come again into the fold of this party, their mother-party,” he added.
SAD leaders Bikram Singh Majithia, Bibi Jagir Kaur, and Union food processing minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal attended the bhog. Cops in civvies and intelligence agencies were also part of the gathering.
I HAD POINTED OUT THE MISTAKES: MAKKAR
AMRITSAR: Former Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) president Avtar Singh Makkar, on Monday, claimed that he had pointed out
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It was a three-day religious programme the SAD had chalked out to seek forgiveness for inadvertent mistakes that the party or the SGPC had committed. PARKASH SINGH BADAL, former CM
the mistakes to atone which the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leadership conducted an Akhand Path and did ‘sewa’ from Saturday to Monday.
Makkar, who attended the bhog ceremony, and also prayed for his own health as he is to undergo a spine surgery, added, “I am not responsible for the mistakes, but I had underlined these. I cannot comment any further as I do not hold any position now. The tenure (of the Badals) was very long and mistakes are natural. Seeking forgiveness is good step and this is also the daily routine of a Sikh,” he said, while interacting with a select group of reporters.
In September, Makkar had
said, “Sukhbir informed me at the last moment about his plans to pardon the Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahimat the Akal Takht. I had warned him against it.”
BADALS SHOULD SAY SORRY TO PEOPLE, SAYS KHAIRA
CHANDIGARH: Calling the apology tendered by the Badal family a “drama”, suspended Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA Sukhpal Singh Khaira on Monday asked them to visit the villages and seek forgiveness from the people who were ruined by their “misrule”.
Khaira made the statement while addressing gatherings in
Mansa on the third day of the nine-day march being organised by AAP dissidents, including suspended Member of Parliament Dharamvira Gandhi and the Lok Insaaf Party.
The attack came after the SAD leadership led by former chief minister Parkash Singh Badal offered prayers at the Akal Takht and sought atonement for mistakes it committed “inadvertently” in the past.
Khaira blamed the Congress and Akali governments for corruption, drugs and mounting public debt in the state.
Jaitu legislator Baldev Singh criticised the Bargari Insaaf Morcha leaders for betraying the trust of the people.