Excommunicated Sikh leader assaulted
ASSAULT ON JOHAR SINGH COMES AFTER JATHEDAR’S DIRECTIVE TO VILLAGE PANCHAYAT TO DISMISS GURDWARA CHHOTA GHALLUGHARA TRUST HEADED BY HIM
GURDASPUR: Gurdwara Chhota Ghallughara trust chief Johar Singh, who was recently declared ‘tankhaiya’ (guilty of religious misconduct) by the Akal Takht, was assaulted by a group of around 15 people, including women, in the premises of the historic shrine at Kahnuwan Chhamb near here on late Monday evening.
The assailants dragged Johar out of his residence on the first floor of the building, brought him on the ground floor and gave him a thrashing.
Gurdaspur SSP HS Bhullar said that on the statement of Johar, a case has been registered against the accused under Sections 323, 452 and 295-A of the IPC at the Bhaini Mian Khan police station.
Johar had recently defied the directive of Akal Takht jathedar Giani Gurbachan Singh to appear before him after a senior functionary of the trust was caught with a woman in the Gurdwara premises on the night of August 11. However, Johar did not abide by the directive saying Giani Gurbachan Singh had been removed as Akal Takht jathedar by the Sarbat Khalsa organised by radical Sikh organisations in Amritsar district on November 15, 2015 and Dhian Singh Mand was appointed jathedar in his place.
Talking to HT, Johar said he had appeared before Mand (parallel jathedar) who declared him ‘tankhaiya’ on October 12 and asked him to perform ‘sewa’ (service) at the Golden Temple for seven days and reappear before the ‘jathedar’ to seek pardon. But the SGPC task force men did not let him perform ‘sewa’ and threw him out of the shrine premises.
Johar said the parallel jathedar later asked him to perform sewa outside the Golden Temple and organise an akhand path at Gurdwara Chhota Ghallughara.
The Monday night attack, he alleged, was aimed at taking away the control of the gurdwara that was being successfully run by the trust since 1974.
While declaring Johar ‘tankhaiya’, Giani Gurbachan Singh had asked the village panchayat to dismiss the Gurdwara Chhota Ghallughara trust and form a local committee to run the shrine. Meanwhile, Johar has secured stay orders from a local court with regard to the gurdwara management.