Punjab Sikh MLAs, ministers to appear before Akal Takht over anti-sacrilege law

Chandigarh,UPDATED: Jun 28, 2026 20:16 IST

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann said on Sunday that all Sikh MLAs and Sikh cabinet ministers will appear before the Akal Takht in Amritsar on June 29 over the anti-sacrilege law. He said they will present their views in writing on the issue.

Speaking to reporters, Mann said the government side would be placed before the Akal Takht by its MLAs and ministers. He also said Punjab Assembly Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan would go, and that any suggestions made by the Akal Takht or the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee would be discussed.

Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Kuldip Singh Gargajj had on June 15 summoned all Sikh MLAs, regardless of party affiliation, and Sikh ministers to appear before the Akal Takht on June 29 regarding the anti-sacrilege law. Non-Sikh cabinet ministers were asked to submit their views in writing before June 29.

The Akal Takht and the SGPC had objected to the anti-sacrilege law, the Jaagat Jot Sri Guru Granth Sahib Satkar (Amendment) Act, 2026, saying it was enacted without consulting the Sikh Panth. The Akal Takht had earlier asked the state government to remove provisions from the Act which are ‘against the Guru Granth Sahib, the Khalsa Panth and the sentiments of the Sangat’.

When asked whether he would appear before the Akal Takht, Mann said he had not been summoned. ‘Our MLAs and cabinet ministers will present the government side. Punjab Assembly Speaker (Kultar Singh Sandhwan) will also go. Whatever suggestions come from the Akal Takht or SGPC, we will discuss the same,’ he said. Mann was accompanied by AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal.

Replying to another question on a purported video, Mann said he would send the clip to the Akal Takht, saying a person seen in it was wearing a mask resembling his face. He said he would also present his side in writing to the Akal Takht and added that he could never think of confronting it. Mann said that when he appeared before the Akal Takht in January, he had stated that he was not in the video.

On June 15, the Sikh clergy declared Mann ‘Guru Dokhi’ and ‘Khalsa Panth Virodhi’ over the controversial video. The edict came after the Akal Takht said the video, purportedly showing a man resembling Mann, had been found to be ‘authentic’ by two forensic laboratories.

The issue goes back to Mann being summoned by the Akal Takht in January over allegations that he had made comments on ‘Guru ki Golak’ and had indulged in ‘objectionable activities’ with pictures of the Sikh Gurus and slain militant Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale in the purported clip. Mann, however, reiterated that he was not in the alleged video and said the person seen in it was wearing a mask resembling his face.

Mann said the government would place its stand before the Akal Takht through Sikh MLAs, Sikh ministers and the Assembly Speaker, while he would also send his written response on the video issue and maintain that he was not the person seen in the clip.

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