Terming the demolition of historic ‘darshani deodi’ at Tarn Taran’s Gurdwara Darbar Sahib as an unsavoury and unfortunate incident, Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh on Wednesday ruled out interference by his Government in the matter.
“It is a religious issue which falls in the exclusive domain of the Shiromani Gurdwara Prabhandak Committee (SGPC),” he said while reacting to the controversy triggered by the demolition of the century-old main entrance structure by a Baba Jagtar Singh Kar Sewa wale group.
Chief Minister made it clear that his government would not interfere on the issue, which came under the sole purview of the SGPC – the mini parliament of Sikhs.
“As a secular party, the Congress does not believe in any sort of religious interference,” said Capt Amarinder, adding that his government was completely aligned to the party principles and did not stand for interference of any kind in matters of faith.
“The SGPC alone could take any decision on the issue, which is a religious matter and hence, required to be treated as such,” he added.
Responding to queries from the media and other quarters, including the opposition, on the issue, the Chief Minister asserted that, as in the past, his government and the Congress party would continue to distance itself from religious issues that came under the SGPC’s purview. Capt Amarinder unequivocally said that his government had no intention of getting into what was solely a religious controversy.
“Political interference in religious matters is against the basic spirit and ethos of the Indian Constitution, which the Congress as well as his government are committed to uphold at all costs,” the Chief Minister said.He added that an elected government could step in only if a religious issue assumed disruptive proportions and needed intervention to ensure the maintenance of law and order in the state.