New Delhi: The controversy embroiling the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (DSGMC) president Manjinder Singh Sirsa over his co-option in DSGMC as Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) nominee and his knowledge of Gurbani and Gurmukhi has refused to settle down. Jag Aasra Guru Ott (JAGO) has challenged Sirsa’s cooption and questioned his knowledge of the Punjabi language and Gurmukhi.
SGPC chief secretary Harjinder Singh in a letter written to DSGMC on August 25 had informed that the executive committee of SGPC had authorized its president to send nomination for cooption as member of DSGMC following which the SGPC president had nominated Manjinder Singh Sirsa as nominee of SGPC for co-opting member of DSGMC.
While alleging that SGPC’s executive body had not adopted any resolution to nominate Sirsa during its September 23 meeting, former president of DSGMC and international president of JAGO party Manjit Singh GK has sought the resignation of SGPC president Jagir Kaur as well as the whole executive committee of SGPC.
Sirsa had lost the DSGMC elections from Punjabi Bagh, the result of which was declared on August 25 and on the same day SAD (B) president Sukhbir Singh Badal announced to nominate Sirsa on SGPC’s seat for enabling his cooption in DSGMC.
Sources informed that JAGO party had filed a written petition in the court challenging the co-option of Sirsa as SGPC’s nominee to DSGMC.
Director Gurdwara Election Narinder Singh had also disqualified Sirsa under section 10 of the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Act 1971 to be chosen a co-opted member of the DSGMC as a nominee of SGPC after Sirsa failed to recite Gurbani and several errors in writing Gurmukhi.
According to orders issued by Narinder Sigh, Sirsa was not able to properly recite Gurmukhi from Ang 1358 of Sri Guru Granth Sahib with proficiency and accuracy.
Similarly, when Sirsa was given dictation from Sri Guru Granth Sahib, he flatly refused to write Gurmukhi stating that the language was too difficult.
Sirsa then wrote a letter where in he volunteered to write Gurmukhi from any other source other than Sri Guru Granth Sahib, ironically the letter has as many as 27 errors out of 46 words indicating little knowledge of Gurmukhi.
JAGO has also questioned the knowledge of Gurmukhi and Gurbani by Sirsa and questioned whether Sirsa deserves to be the president of the Sikh religious body.
