Amritsar: The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) has raised serious objections to the recent legislative amendments made by the Punjab government regarding the security, management, and upkeep of Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji. Addressing a press conference, SGPC President Advocate Harjinder Singh Dhami asserted that the state government formulated and pushed through these statutory changes during its special assembly session at Sri Anandpur Sahib without holding any prior, meaningful consultations with either the SGPC or the temporal authority of Sri Akal Takht Sahib.
The SGPC chief emphasized that the committee holds statutory, exclusive authority over Sikh religious affairs under the landmark Sikh Gurdwaras Act 1925. While clarifying that the SGPC fundamentally welcomes and supports harsher legal punishments to deter horrific acts of sacrilege, Advocate Dhami warned that certain operational clauses in the newly amended bill directly infringe upon traditional religious practices and the organizational autonomy of the apex Sikh body. The committee has raised specific red flags over legal definitions concerning “custodians” and a mandate requiring the digital publication of all holy Saroops’ locations on a public government website.
According to the SGPC leadership, the management body already operates a robust, modern tracking system to oversee the allocation and safety of holy Saroops, ensuring that congregations meet strict guidelines regarding verification, functional CCTV security, fire safety protocols, and certified Granthi personnel before a Saroop is transitioned. Advocate Dhami argued that placing detailed geographical inventories of holy Saroops on a public website poses severe security threats and risks trivializing the absolute spiritual authority of Guru Sahib by treating holy scriptures like mundane commodities. He reiterated that the implementation of the “Sikh Rehat Maryada” remains an exclusively religious domain governed solely under the spiritual canopy of Sri Akal Takht Sahib, rather than state-led legal interventions.
Following an initial organizational review meeting held at Takht Sri Damdama Sahib with various Sikh sects, local Gurdwara committees, and Singh Sabhas, the SGPC has now summoned a massive Panthic convention at Gurdwara Sri Baba Bakala Sahib scheduled for May 31, 2026. The apex body has extended formal invitations to all prominent Panthic organizations, Nihang Singh Dals, the Damdami Taksal, the Nirmala sect, and allied socio-religious institutions. Emphasizing that the upcoming convention is aimed at defending institutional autonomy and religious rights rather than provoking a direct political confrontation, Advocate Dhami appealed to the Punjab government to immediately withdraw the controversial clauses and refrain from interfering in the community’s internal religious frameworks.
