Tue Dec 03 08:14:46 UTC 2024: ## Former Punjab CM Begins Penance at Golden Temple After Sacrilege Case Ruling
**Amritsar, Punjab –** Former Punjab Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal commenced his religious penance at the Golden Temple in Amritsar today, following a ruling by the Akal Takht, the highest temporal body of Sikhs. Badal, who heads the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), was found guilty of religious misconduct related to the 2015 sacrilege of the Guru Granth Sahib and was ordered to perform “sewadar” duties.
Visuals showed Badal, seated in a wheelchair at the temple entrance, wearing a plaque and carrying a spear. His sentence includes cleaning duties at various gurdwaras. Senior Akali Dal leader Bikram Singh Majithia, Badal’s brother-in-law, began his own penance by washing utensils at the Golden Temple.
The Akal Takht found Badal guilty of showing favoritism towards Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim, who was excommunicated for mimicking Sikh Gurus. The Akal Takht’s decision also stripped Badal’s late father, Parkash Singh Badal, of the “Fakhr-e-Qaum” (pride of the Sikh community) honour.
The punishment involves cleaning bathrooms at the Golden Temple for an hour daily, followed by a bath and service in the langar (community kitchen). Other Akali Dal leaders who served in the 2007-2017 Punjab government also received similar directives. The Akal Takht Jathedar, Giani Raghbir Singh, has further requested the Akali Dal working committee to accept Badal’s resignation as party chief. Badal has publicly admitted his mistakes and apologized to the Akal Takht. The “tankhah,” or religious punishment, was announced yesterday.
First Piper 