A volunteer cleans the floor after heavy rain at the Golden Temple in Amritsar (AFP)
AMRITSAR: All Sikhs want Khalistan and will accept it if offered by India, said acting Akal Takht jathedar Giani Harpreet Singh, 36 years after Operation Bluestar.
The jathedar, responding to a question from media on the occasion of the 36th anniversary of Operation Bluestar, also said “there is no harm if Sikh youth raise slogans in praise of Khalistan.”
Akal Takht is the supreme temporal authority for Sikhs among the five takhts (temporal seats of Sikhs). Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) president Gobind Singh Longowal also endorsed Giani Harpreet Singh’s stance.”
It is probably for the first time that the heads of two supreme Sikh bodies — Akal Takht and SGPC — have openly supported the cause of a separate state of Khalistan. It is also significant that the remarks came on the occasion of the anniversary of Operation Bluestar, a day marked by the community as Ghallughara (genocide) Day.
The remarks also got support from Sikh separatists and the founder of radical Sikh organisation Dal Khalsa Gajinder Singh, who — believed to have taken asylum in Pakistan — posted a message on Facebook: “The leader of Akal Takht Sahib has supported Khalistan in his own style today.May God bless us with the ability to protect his statement.”
Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee president Sunil Jakhar said those sitting on a position of respect should also realise the responsibility it carries.
Ashwani Sharma, president of Punjab BJP, which is in alliance with the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), said: “Not just Punjabis, but every Indian is religiously attached with Akal Takht, and those sitting on respectable positions should have not commented on something which hurts the unity and integrity of the nation.”
