The rebel Akali leaders appear to be losing the plot against the party president Sukhbir Singh Badal. By getting him summoned from Akal Takht, the rebels have already provided him a way out.
The rebels unwittingly, rather quietly naively have provided an escape route to the beleaguered Akali chief. He wouldn’t have asked for more. He has already sought an apology from Akali Takht on a few occasions earlier. He, as a devout Sikh and heading a panthic party, will always welcome to present himself
before the highest temporal authority of the Sikhs.
Moreover, he has already announced that as a “devout Sikh”, he will gladly present himself before the Akal Takht. That was quite expected, as no devout Sikh would ignore the Akal Takht directives and orders.
Sukhbir Badal has appeared before the Akal Takht to atone for various “mistakes”, at least on three occasions earlier. First time, Sukhbir, along with his late father and former Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal appeared before the Akal Takht, on December 8, 2018, to seek atonement for various “mistakes” committed “inadvertently” in the past.
After that, Sukhbir sought forgiveness before the Akal Takhat, on May 4, 2023, after the ‘antim ardas’ of his father, for “mistakes committed inadvertently”.
Later, Sukhbir again presented himself before the Akal Takht on December 14, 2023, the 103rd Foundation Day of the party to seek forgiveness over the incidents of sacrilege, which took place during the Akali-BJP regime.
Now once again, Sukhbir will be presenting himself before the Akal Takht. While on earlier occasions he had presented himself on his own, this time he has been summoned by the Akal Takht following “the complaint” from the party rebels.
The role of the Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Raghbir Singh will be under scanner. The Akal Takht Jathedar is appointed by the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), which is controlled by the Shiromani Akali Dal, whose president is Sukhbir Singh Badal himself. Even the SGPC president is the appointee of Sukhbir only.
This is a classic case of “conflict of interest”. While the Akal Takht remains the supreme temporal authority of the Sikhs, its Jathedar is appointed by the SGPC, which in turn is an elected body with members elected directly by the Sikh community. Right now, the Shiromani Akali Dal, led by Sukhbir Singh Badal enjoys a comfortable majority in the SGPC.
The Akal Takht Jathedar will not only need to do justice, he should also “be seen” to be doing justice. The Akali-controlled SGPC being his appointing authority does not mean he may not act independently and make independent decisions, which in all probability he will. The issue will be whether it will be accepted by the Sikh community or not.
Whatever the reasons for the rebellion by the rebels, it is a fact that there is widespread disenchantment among the traditional Akali supporters with the existing Akali leadership.
The fact that two independents Amritpal and Sarabjit Singh got elected from Khaddor Sahib and Faridkot parliamentary constituencies respectively is testimony that the Akali vote bank is very much there. It has only moved away from a “particularly political party”.
The rebels claim to be representing the community sentiment while accusing Sukhbir of “not representing the sentiments of the Panth”, for which he has been summoned by the Akal Takht Jathedar to explain his position.
The rebels’ intent is obvious to see Sukhbir’s exit as the party president which, they feel, is the popular “panthic sentiment”. They believe that the traditional Akali supporters are drifting towards radical sections among the Akalis some going to the Aam Aadmi Party and some even having voted for the Congress.
The appearance of Sukhbir Badal before the Akal Takht will not be able to resolve the leadership issue. Sukhbir has a firm grip and hold on the Akali cadres.
Most of the rebel leaders do not have much of a base of their own. That provides an additional adv
antage to Sukhbir in the battle of wits for leadership.
Sukhbir Badal, in all likelihood, will survive the crisis. But the bigger question is whether he will be able to redeem to the party’s position in the immediate future. In the last General Elections, the party has seen its “worst ever” performance. It will have to rise from the ashes once again and that is important for both, the ‘panth’, as well as Punjab.
Interestingly the firebrand Akali leader and Sukhbir’s brother-in-law Bikram Singh Majithia has maintained a studied silence in the entire crisis. Although he remains with Sukhbir, he has avoided publicly criticizing the rebels, saying that they have all worked together in the recent past. Maybe he can offer some middle path towards rapprochement eventually.
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