Punjab Government has decided to provide legal and financial support for a review petition against the Supreme Court’s recent verdict ordering demolition of Guru Ravidas temple in Delhi's Tughlaqabad.
Besides, the Government would also bear the expenses to re-build a new shrine at the same place. “Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh had already spoken to the Union Urban Development Minister Hardeep Singh Puri for re-allotment of the same site,” said the state Cabinet Minister Charanjit Singh Channi, on Monday.
Channi, the state’s Technical Education and Industrial Training, and Employment Generation Minister, is the part of five-member panel set up by the Chief Minister a day before to meet the religious and political representatives of the Ravidas community to draw up a comprehensive strategy to resolve the issue triggered after the demolition of the ancient temple.
Besides Channi, the state Social Security and Development Minister Aruna Chaudhary, Congress’ Jalandhar MP Santokh Singh Chaudhary, Chabbewal MLA Dr Raj Kumar and Jalandhar West MLA Sushil Kumar Rinku are the members of the panel.
The announcements came a day after the Dalit outfits, under the banner of the Guru Ravidas Jayanti Samaroh Samiti, had called for a state-wide bandh in Punjab on August 13 to protest the recent reported demolition of the Sri Guru Ravidas temple in Tughlakabad in Delhi, on the order of the Supreme Court. The Samiti has also announced that it will observe 15th August as a “Black Day”.
The Supreme Court has ordered the demolition of the shrine in its recent order, sparking protests from the community across the State.
Alarmed over the situation, the Chief Minister had appealed to the Prime Minister Narendra Modi to personally intervene to resolve the tension. Besides, he also set up a committee to resolve the issue.
Capt Amarinder had appealed to the community to call off their protests as his Government was ready to extend its full support to them to get the matter amicably resolved with the Centre.
While appealing to the Prime Minister to step in for a resolution, Capt Amarinder also spoke to the Union Minister Puri to seek re-allotment of the same site, which reportedly belongs to the Delhi Development Authority, to enable the community to reconstruct the temple.
CONG EXTENDS SUPPORT, APPEALS TO ENSURE PEACEFUL PROTESTS
Extending Punjab Congress’ support to the Ravidas community on the demolished temple issue, the state unit president Sunil Jakhar on Monday appealed to the protestors to ensure that the common people are not adversely impacted as a result of their protests.
Jakhar, the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) president, said that the party stood by the community and would help in every possible way to pursue the case for re-allocation of the historic site and reconstruction of the temple demolished in Delhi under the Supreme Court’s orders.
However, in the interest of the people, he urged the Guru Ravidas Jayanti Samaroh Samiti, which is spearheading the protests, not to block roads and highways as that was causing hardship to the commuters.
“PPCC would stand with the community in its fight for restoration of the site and for rebuilding of the temple and other connected structures,” said Jakhar while also thanking the Chief Minister for coming out in Samiti’s support and taking up the matter with the central government.
SAD TO MEET SHAH, EXTENDS ALL SUPPORT
Condemning the demolition and vandalism of historic Shri Guru Ravidass Temple by Delhi Development Authority at Tughlakabad village in Delhi, the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Badal on Monday said that the party is ready to help restore the legal case as well as re-build the historic temple at party’s expenses.
Citing that the baani of Sri Guru Ravi Dass is inextricable part of Sri Guru Granth Sahib, he said that SAD will not tolerate beadbi (desecration) to religious Gurus and will take up the matter with the Central Government.
“It is a matter of faith of millions of followers of Shri Guru Ravidass ji in and outside Punjab...At this hour, SAD firmly stands with the followers of Shri Guru Ravidass ji,” he said while vowing to resolve the issue at the earliest by taking up the matter with the Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
Expressing anguish and astonishment to know that the historic temple — for which land was donated by the then ruler Sikandar Lodhi and revenue records reveal that the land belongs to the community — was vandalized, besides forcibly removing Shri Ravidass idol, Sukhbir said that it seems the local committee managing the Temple could not be adequately represented in the Court.
AAP TO SUE BADALS FOR MISLEADING STATEMENT AGAINST IT
Aam Aadmi Party’s (AAP) Punjab unit, taking a serious view of the “outpourings” of SAD’s certain leaders against the party over the demolition of historic Guru Ravidas temple in the national capital by DDA on August 10, on Monday said that it would sue them for spearheading a “cheap campaign” to grab political mileage besides saving their own skin.
AAP accused the SAD of “mounting a baseless vilification campaign against the party”.
AAP leaders, including party’s state’s core committee chief and MLA Principal Budh Ram, Deputy Leader of Opposition in Punjab Assembly Sarabjit Kaur Manuke, besides some MLAs and senior leaders, in a joint statement, said that the Arvind Kejriwal-led Delhi Government in Delhi had no role in the demolition of the ancient temple for the reason that DDA was directly under control of the Union Government led by Narendra Modi, an alliance partners of the SAD.BJP-SAD shall have to pay a heavy price for their role in demolishing the historic temple, they said.
The AAP leaders further added that the entire country was privy to the realities on the ground that besides, DDA, police dispensation and law and order machinery among others was under direct control of the union government, saying the Kejriwal government had no role to play in the demolition as was being projected, which, they said, why his government was pressing for full statehood.
The AAP leaders lamented that the Akali Dal MLAs led by Pawan Tinu, instead of spitting fire against the DDA and the BJP government at the centre, mounted a vilification campaign against the Kajriwal government by releasing a press note, which was a mere ploy to garner cheap publicity and to hide their own sins. “If the Akali MLAs did not offer unconditional apology, the AAP would sue them,” they said.
AAP leaders further informed that a delegation of the party led by Leader of Opposition Harpal Singh Cheema and MLA Kultar Singh Sandhwan would meet the Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on August 13 in connection with the demolition of the Ravidas temple.