Akal Takht jathedar calls on Dhami, urges him to withdraw resignation as SGPC chief

Akal Takht jathedar Giani Raghbir Singh called on Harjinder Singh Dhami at his residence at Piplanwala in Hoshiarpur district and appealed to him to withdraw his resignation from the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC).

Dhami had resigned from the post of SGPC president on February 17 after the Akal Takht jathedar condemned the gurdwara body for the dismissal of Giani Harpreet Singh as the jathedar of Takht Damdama Sahib.

The jathedar spent about half an hour with Dhami and called it a “family meet”. “The family (Dhami’s) has been blessed with a child after a long time, so I had come to congratulate them. It was purely a personal meeting,” he told reporters.

Giani Raghbir Singh said that the Akal Takht and the SGPC needed a leader like Dhami. “He is an esteemed personality, who is virtuous, honest, and a true Gursikh. The Akal Takht and SGPC need a person like him,” he said, adding he had urged Dhami to take back his resignation.

Asked about the report of the five-member committee that had been tasked to oversee the re-organisation of the Shiromani Akali Dal, in which it had raised concerns over the SAD leadership’s unwillingness to conduct a membership drive under the Akal Takht’s supervision, he said that “the matter is being analysed”.

Responding to a question about Giani Harpreet Singh’s remarks against the SGPC and the SAD leadership, he said that the former Damdama Sahib jathedar was now free to do so.

Dhami declined comment on the Akal Takht jathedar’s visit.