SAD membership drive: Akal Takht panel meets for first time

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Patiala (Punjab), Feb 4 (PTI) The first meeting of the Akal Takht-appointed seven-member committee to oversee a new membership drive of the embattled Shiromani Akali Dal was held here on Tuesday.

The development came days after Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Raghbir Singh asked the working committee of the SAD to make the committee functional.

Speaking to reporters here on Tuesday, Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) president Harjinder Singh Dhami said that according to the order of the Akal Takht, the first meeting of the committee was held.

The meeting took place in a cordial atmosphere where all seven members kept their views frankly, he said.

The committee invited the working president of SAD, Balwinder Singh Bhundar, to attend its next meeting on February 11 at Bahadurgarh, Patiala.

Dhami urged all the SAD leaders to work for the unity of the party.

On December 2 last year, the Akal Takht pronounced religious punishment for SAD leader Sukhbir Singh Badal for the "mistakes" committed by the party and its government from 2007 to 2017. It had also formed the seven-member committee for starting the membership drive and holding the elections for the post of party president and other office bearers within six months.

Rebel Akali leader Gurpartap Singh Wadala, who is member of the committee, accused the SAD leadership of creating hurdles in the implementation of the edict of the Akal Takht.

He said that SAD working president Bhundar has been called in the next meeting to make the SAD's stand clear on the responsibility given by the Akal Takht to the panel.

Wadala said the SAD's recent move to start the recruitment drive on its own was against the orders of the highest temporal seat of Sikhs.

The seven-member panel comprised SGPC chief Dhami, former SGPC chief Kirpal Singh Badhungar, SAD leader Iqbal Singh Jhunda, rebel party leader Wadala, MLA Manpreet Singh Ayali, Santa Singh Umaidpur and Satwant Kaur.

The SAD working committee on January 10 had formed a panel to oversee the membership drive, which started on January 20.

On January 27, the jathedar had asked the SAD to make the Akal Takht's committee functional. PTI COR CHS KVK KVK