The Akal Takht, the highest temporal authority of the Sikh community, has sentenced former Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Badal to cleaning duties in the kitchens and bathrooms of several Gurdwaras, including the iconic Golden Temple in Amritsar. This decision comes in response to his alleged favoritism towards Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim in the 2015 sacrilege of the Guru Granth Sahib. Additionally, Sukhbir Badal’s father, the late Parkash Singh Badal, a former Chief Minister of Punjab, has been stripped of the Fakhr-e-Qaum (pride of the Sikh community) honor, which was awarded to him in 2011 for his services to the community.
Sukhbir Badal, who is wheelchair-bound, along with core committee members and leaders of the Akali Dal who served as cabinet members during 2015, is scheduled to clean the bathrooms at the Golden Temple on December 3 from 12 noon to 1 pm. Following this duty, they will take a bath and participate in serving langar (community meal).
The sentence was announced after Mr. Badal tendered an unconditional apology to the Akal Takht, acknowledging his mistakes. Earlier in the day, the five high priests of the Sikhs, led by Akal Takht jathedar Giani Raghbir Singh, revealed the extent of the ‘tankhah’ (religious punishment for misconduct).
The jathedar also urged the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) working committee to accept Mr. Badal’s resignation as party chief and to form a panel for reorganizing the party within six months.
In August, Sukhbir Badal was declared a “tankhaiya” by the Akal Takht after being found guilty of religious misconduct for actions taken by the party during its tenure in Punjab from 2007 to 2017. These actions included granting a pardon to Gurmeet Ram Rahim in connection with sacrilege cases that had incited clashes between Dera followers and Sikhs across Punjab.
In 2007, Gurmeet Ram Rahim had controversially dressed as Sikh Gurus and performed a ceremony, leading to his excommunication by the Akal Takht. Sukhbir Singh Badal was accused of using his influence to secure a pardon for the Dera chief.
