WSN presents a critical analysis of the functioning of the premier institution of the Sikhs -the SGPC -Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee, which is celebrating its formation day and is moving towards its centennial year in the coming decade.

SGPC -the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee is appropriately called the Sikh Parliament. Since its formation, on 15 November, 1920, as part of the Gurdwara Reform movement, after huge sacrifices by Akali workers and leaders, it has played a significant role in Sikh religio-political affairs.

Defining the sphere of the SGPC, Jaspal Singh, in his thesis submitted to the Punjabi University Patiala on the SGPC working from 1925-1984 says in his opening remarks that, “though apparently a religious body, the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee since its birth has been articulating the socio-religious, cultural, economic as well as the political interests of the Sikhs, because these features of the society cannot be divorced from each other.”

“The members of the SGPC hold office for five years from the date of its constitution or until the constitution of a new body, whichever is later. The Central government conducts elections and it usually delays. After 1965, elections were held in 1979, 1996 and 2004, after a gap of 14, 17, 8 and 7 years. A mandatory provision is required in the Act to conduct the elections on schedule.”

Dr. Kashmir Singh, former head Law Department, Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar

Setting up Sikh educational institutions far and wide, Engineering and Medical colleges, Guru Granth Sahib University, missionary colleges, representation of the Sikh at various fora, leading various Morchas broadcasting of live Kirtan across the world, challenging the government of India whenever it has attempted to denigrate the Sikhs or demean Sikhism in any way are singular achievements of the SGPC in the past but its entire working is now under the scanner of the Sikh Sangat, scholars and religio-political activists who keep a tab on the working of this premier institution of the Sikhs.

In recent times, the amendment to the Sikh Gurdwara Act, 1925 disenfranchising the so-called “Sehajdhari Sikhs” by the Indian Parliament more because of the proximity of Shiromani Akali Dal and the Bharatiya Janata Party is a significant achievement of the SGPC, though in fairness it must be mentioned that the process was initiated by the Shiromani Akali Dal (Mann), twenty years ago.

On the other hand, the SGPC has monumentally failed to handle the Sacha Sauda Dera Sirsa issue and its various flip-flops on the independent working of Akal Takht Sahib is too well known.  Rising apostasy among the youth, unstoppable drugs and alcohol abuse in rural and urban areas, sinister interference of the RSS and BJP in Sikh affairs, inability to stop the pseudo-Dera culture, corruption in the SGPC bureaucracy, succumbing to political pressures while appointing and removing Jathedars of Takhts, procrastinating on substantive issues relating to Dasam Granth, Ragmala are a few of the many serious challenges that the SGPC should confront and come up with solutions as per Sikh tenets, Sikh traditions, acceptable to the Sikh community.

“SGPC has miserably failed to protect all Sikh religious shrines, historical places, historical monuments, Sikh artefacts, Sikh heritage and the future of the Sikhs.”

Gurdeep Singh Kundan, Secretary, Global Sikh Council

Flaws in the century old Sikh Gurdwara Act 1925 under which it was given a legal shape, haughtiness of the Shiromani Akali Dal leadership that has since been controlling the affairs, greed of various Presidents to stick to power in full complicity of the government of India have over the decades diluted the importance of the body leading to voices of dissent and serious attempts to form another global organisation to effectively represent the Sikhs all across the world.

Tenure overrunning is not new to the SGPC. This time again on November 29, the general house of the SGPC will meet in the historic Teja Singh Samundri Hall within the Darbar Sahib complex in Amritsar to “elect” its President and Executive for one year. Prof. Kirpal Singh Badungar was elected last year for a second tenure after the year after a 11-year-long year-to-year “election” of Avtar Singh Makkar as President. The election of the SGPC President has been teasing called, the “the envelope Presidency” as actually the name of the President as decided by the President of the Shiromani Akali Dal -this time Sukhbir Singh Badal, comes during the course of the SGPC meeting in an envelope and subsequently that name is proposed and his presidency announced and “unanimously elected.”

Dr. Kashmir Singh, former head of the Law department of the Guru Nanak Dev University in Amritsar, in his review of SGPC working published by the Oxford Book of Sikh Studies, has pointed out that, “the members of the SGPC hold office for five years from the date of its constitution or until the constitution of a new body, whichever is later. The Central government conducts elections and it usually delays. After 1965, elections were held in 1979, 1996 and 2004, after a gap of 14, 17, 8 and 7 years. A mandatory provision is required in the Act to conduct the elections on schedule.”

This is how due to an anomaly in the Sikh Gurdwara Act, 1925, the government of India and the SGPC -singly or jointly continue to work beyond their tenures. It will be a shock and surprise to lean that along with the General house elections, there should be elections to the local committees of various historical Gurdwaras. Election to the local committees was held in 1996 after a gap of 32 years! Since then the elections to the local committees has not taken place. So much for democratic functioning. It must however be said that Panthic organisations too do not take this seriously and enforce the SGPC and the government of India to conduct regular elections.

Justice Ranjit Singh Narula, the architect of the first All India Sikh Gurdwara legislation, a devout devoted Sikh at heart, as Chief Commissioner Gurdwara Elections submitted many recommendations to the Ministry of Home Affairs but only a few were accepted.

In 1995, the Shiromani Akali Dal (Mann) led by Simranjit Singh Mann petitioned the National Commission for Minorities when Balwant Singh Ramoowalia was its deputy head seeking reforms in SGPC working and were able to get seats reserved for women in the SGPC house, which by itself no mean achievement, though it is another story that husbands of most women members “function” as members whereas the women members can be seen twice a year during the Executive meetings.

SGPC meets twice a year for a few hours -one meeting is to elect the President and the Executive and the other is to pass the budget proposals. Comprising 190 members including reservation for so-called Scheduled castes and women, 170 of which are elected, 15 nominated with the 5 Jathedars as ex-officio members, the SGPC functions as a representative body of the Sikhs.  

Over the last few years, its reach and impact has been questioned and debated primarily because of the inefficiency of the Akali incumbents, no steps to amend regressive sections of the Sikh Gurdwara Management Act and total lack of innovation to become a fully representative body of the Sikhs. Speaking exclusively to the World Sikh News, secretary of the Global Sikh Council, Gurdeep Singh Kundan said that, “SGPC has miserably failed to protect all Sikh religious shrines, historical places, historical monuments, Sikh artefacts, Sikh heritage and the future of the Sikhs. Architecture of the past is being destroyed and being placed with marble and gold. There is very little or negligible support to the Sikh poor and underprivileged. The puppet management under the tutelage of the present political masters must end and a course correction must set in, the possibility of which appears bleak. It is time to set up newer global forums and mechanisms to address global Sikh needs and issues.”

Former Secretary of the SGPC Manjit Singh Calcutta who was in the thick of the SGPC during his tenure said, “The grip of the Badals on the SGPC has virtually strangulated this august body and serious efforts have to be made to regain the glory and prestige of the body which has done so much for the Sikh nation.”

In its last executive meeting, the SGPC said that that they would make efforts that Punjabi language gets it due place in Punjab? What have you been doing over the years? Why did this situation come about? Is this not laughable?

The contribution of Dr. Roop Singh as a scholar-administrator is exemplary, but to promote him to the post of Chief Secretary for which there is no provision is to create an unsavoury situation should someone challenge the same.

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SGPC has won many battles for the Sikhs, raised relevant issues, played the role of a daring representative of the Sikh community on many an occasion. If it could only democratise its own functioning, meet more regularly and discuss issues, not let burning issues of the community remain in the limbo for decades together, expand its scope beyond Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana and Chandigarh, it has the potential to become the de jure Parliament of the Sikhs.

A few years from now, SGPC will observe its centennial working year. It is time to make amendments to the Sikh Gurdwara Act 1925 and a course correction make it an effectively functioning Sikh Parliament.