Himmat’s posts on ‘dera-apology row’ still on social media
AMRITSAR: Himmat Singh, a key witness in the Justice Ranjit Singh Commission report, has retracted from his statement submitted to the commission. But, he cannot make the retraction in public domain as his, and his elder brother and Akal Takht head granthi Giani Gurmukh Singh’s interviews are still being circulated on the social media.
The posts that he had shared on his personal Facebook account, ‘revealing’ the truth behind dera-apology row, are still there on the social networking platform. Retracting his statement before the media, on August 20, Himmat had claimed that the commission had asked him to sign on a statement, already lying on his desk, at two places.
He had further alleged that he was not allowed to read the statement, which was written in English as well as in Punjabi. As per his claims, he cannot read English and the statement in Punjabi was not shown to him.
He had added that Punjab jail minister Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa had ‘pressurised’ him for the submission.
However, he seems to have forgotten to delete the posts justifying the statement that he had submitted to the commission, from his social networking accounts. Till the filing of this report, the posts were still there on his personal account, that he runs under the name ‘Himmat Singh Khalsa’.
He has written some of these posts directly on his account, while others are shared posts of other people’s accounts. He had also shared newspaper clippings about his move of resigning from his job in the SGPC and about his plan to lodge his statement on ‘how apology was granted to the dera chief in September 2015.”
After he was transferred to Gurdwara Dhamtan Sahib in Jind district of Haryana from the Golden Temple Complex, Himmat Singh had left the job, alleging that being a brother of former Takht Damdama Sahib jathedar Giani Gurmukh Singh, who ‘exposed the role of Badal family in dera-apology row’, he is being harassed by the SGPC officials.
He had shared content of this resignation on his Facebook account on October 3, 2017, and tagged 45 people in his friend list. He had earlier served as a granthi at the Golden Temple in Amritsar.
The resignation starts with the allegation that ‘both the Badals (Parkash Singh Badal and Sukhbir Badal) had called the Takht jathedars to Chandigarh and ordered them to pardon the dera head for imitating Guru Gobind Singh’. He had shared a copy of this resignation with the Hindustan Times, from his personal contact number, through Whatsapp. He had even shared links of popular TV channels and newspaper clippings, disseminating his move to approach the Justice Ranjit Singh Commission on October 5 and 6 last year.
All these posts are still visible on his Facebook account. In a post in Punjabi language, dated October 22 last year, shared directly on his Facebook account, he has recognised the work of Justice Ranjit Singh Commission and criticised the SGPC for not cooperating it in inquiry about the sacrilege incidents. In the post, he has also alleged that the SGPC is doing so under the pressure of the Badals.
Even as he has now claimed that the statement in Punjabi was not shown to him, he had shared its content with the Hindustan Times on December 12 last year, through Whatsapp.
Apart from his, recorded interviews of Himmat and his brother Giani Gurmukh Singh are still making rounds on the social media. Both the brothers are being facing negative comments on the social media due to the retraction.