Dera chief was pardoned by Takht on basis of 8-yr-old letter: Tarlochan Singh
AMRITSAR : Former Rajya Sabha member Tarlochan Singh on Saturday claimed that the Akal Takht had pardoned Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim in 2015 on the basis of an old letter brought by Arya Samaj leader Swami Agnivesh on behalf of the dera head in 2007.
Talking to HT, Singh also claimed that the 2007 letter was drafted by him and the word ‘apology’ was not part of the original letter.
“The word ‘apology’ was added to it later as stated by Giani Iqbal Singh recently,” said the ex-mp, who was here to address a seminar organised by the Chief Khalsa Diwan (CKD) on the philosophy of Sikhism’s founder Guru Nanak at its head office here.
Giani Iqbal Singh, former jathedar of Takht Patna Sahib, had stated that the 2007 letter was modified at the Akal Takht at the time when the dera chief was pardoned in the blasphemy case by the Sikh clergy in September 24, 2015. The apology was revoked by the Takht later after facing a massive backlash by the Sikh organisations.
Giani Iqbal Singh, after resigning as Takht Patna Sahib jathedar, recently claimed that the words ‘khima da jachak’ (the one who seeks pardon) was not part of the original letter sent by the dera head. These words were added to the letter at the Takht later, he had said.
Giani Iqbal Singh was among the Sikh clergymen, headed by the then Akal Takht jathedar Giani Gurbachan Singh, who took the controversial decision of granting the apology to Ram Rahim.
Tarlochan Singh said Giani Iqbal Singh has reopened the matter by making the disclosure in this regard. “The letter on which the dera chief was pardoned was drafted by me and brought by Swami Agnivesh to the Akal Takht soon after Ram Rahim committed the blasphemy (by wearing an attire similar to the one worn by tenth Sikh Guru Gobind Singh) in 2007,” he said.
He added, “Agnivesh had urged the Akal Takht to pardon the dera chief. However, the Takht refused to pardon him at that time. The letter remained lying with the Takht for eight years. Finally, they used the same letter while pardoning the dera chief in 2015 by adding the words related to apology.”
Punjab witnessed bloody clashes between Sikh activists and dera followers after the 2007 blasphemy episode of the dera chief. The Akal Takht issued a hukamnama (religious edict) asking the Sikh community to boycott the dera. Leading a delegation, Swami Agnivesh reached out to the Akal Takht on May 29, 2007 with a letter signed by the dera chief to resolve the matter.
Addressing the CKD seminar, Tarlochan criticised the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee for failing to spread the teachings of Guru Nanak and indulging in politics.