'Saroops' row: Mann lost moral authority to continue as CM, says Punjab Cong

Chandigarh, Jan 20 (PTI) The Punjab Congress Tuesday slammed Bhagwant Mann over the issue of missing 'saroops' of the Guru Granth Sahib and said he has lost the moral authority to continue as the chief minister after his government took a U-turn on the records regarding the sacred copies at a religious place in Nawanshahr.

Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema on Monday said records pertaining to the Sikh holy book at the Rasokhana Shri Nabh Kanwal Raja Sahib shrine in Banga in Nawanshahr were found to be correct, days after Mann claimed that 169 of the 328 missing 'saroops' have been recovered from the shrine.

Senior Congress leader and leader of opposition in the Punjab Assembly Partap Singh Bajwa on Tuesday said Mann stands "completely exposed" after Cheema's clarification confirmed that the records of all 'saroops' at the shrine in Banga are intact.

Bajwa said Mann's claim, made publicly on the sacred occasion of Maghi Mela, that 169 'saroops' of Sri Guru Granth Sahib were recovered near Banga had caused deep pain and anguish among the Sikh community.

"Now, the finance minister has dismissed this shocking claim as a mere 'miscommunication'. Matters of faith cannot be reduced to casual explanations or damage control exercises," Bajwa asserted.

He said by making an "unverified and irresponsible" statement on an extremely sensitive religious issue, Mann has not only misled the people of Punjab but has also severely damaged the dignity of the constitutional office he holds.

"A chief minister who plays with religious sentiments for headlines forfeits all moral authority to continue in office," Bajwa said in a statement.

Former education minister and Congress MLA Pargat Singh said Mann should not only apologize but also express deep regret.

He claimed that the issue of the missing 'saroops' is an internal matter of the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), not a case of sacrilege.

It is unfortunate that Mann issued a "misleading" statement claiming the recovery of 169 missing 'saroops', forcing the government to make a U-turn on the matter, said Singh.

"CM Mann misled the people of Punjab with false statements," he said.

Punjab Congress chief Amrinder Singh Raja Warring said it was not for the first time that the state government had done so. "We really don't know whom to believe, whether the chief minister or the finance minister on the issue".

On January 14, Mann had said that 169 sacred copies of the Guru Granth Sahib had been recovered by the SIT probing the 328 missing 'saroops'.

"Of the 169 'saroops' found from a religious place near Banga in Nawanshahr, 139 have no official record. Only 30 'saroops' have a record...," Mann had said while addressing a gathering during the Maghi Mela in Muktsar.

However, the management of the Rasokhana Shri Nabh Kanwal Raja Sahib later had countered the claims of the CM, claiming that all 'saroops' were accounted for.

The Punjab Police has been probing the 328 missing 'saroops' case. The police registered a case in Amritsar against 16 people, including SGPC's former chief secretary, in connection with the disappearance of 'saroops' in 2020. PTI CHS KVK KVK