Maintaining that the “emotive issue” of Gurdwaras was ever close to heart and soul of every Sikh more than their lives, Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal on Sunday said that Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) was “duty bound to thwart every attempt of the modern-day mahants to take over control of their revered shrines in Haryana”.
Badal, addressing a political conference to mark sacred occasion of Rakhar Punia, said that realising well that Gurdwaras were chief source of temporal and spiritual power of the Sikhs, the Congress and its agents were trying to wrest their control.
“These attempts of the Congress and its stooges will never turn into a reality because every Sikh is aware of their dubious track record. The deliberate attempt by the Congress to weaken SAD, Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC) and even Sri Akal Takht Sahib, is totally intolerable,” said Badal.
Recalling enormous sacrifices made by Sikhs to constitute SGPC during British Raj, the Chief Minister said that ‘modern day mahants’ were trying to weaken this prestigious body of the Sikhs, at the behest of Congress party.
“It is a time for every Sikh to introspect anti-Sikh stance of the Congress, which had attacked Harmandir Sahib and killed innocent Sikhs during 1984 Sikh carnage, so that it could be taught a befitting lesson for all these sins. The tyrannies unleashed by the Congress party on Sikhs have surpassed even those of the Britishers and the Mughals due to which every true Sikh can never forgive it,” added Badal.
lashing out at the Congress party for meting out step motherly treatment towards the State, Badal said that successive Congress Governments at the Centre had deliberately framed such policies, which were aimed at ruining the industry and agriculture in the State.
“Besides all this, the Congress party has irrelevantly meddled in the social, political, economic and even religious matters of the State,” he added.
On the other hand, Badal expressed hope that the Prime Minister would steer the country on the path of progress and development by overcoming all the hurdles. “It may take some time but the day is not far away when Modi will restore the pristine glory of country by overcoming the current crisis faced by the nation,” he added.
later interacting with media persons, Badal said that it was too early to assess Centre’s performance. “Modi Government must be given some time to perform…Punjab would be immensely benefitted from the current regime of the NDA Government,” he added.
Making a scathing attack on the Congress party, the Chief Minister said that Congress party should not oppose any move of the Centre or State Government just for the sake of Opposition. Rather, Badal, advised the Congress party to play the role of a constructive Opposition for ensuring the welfare of the country and the State.