KARNAL: Several Sikh leaders served a 30-day ultimatum on the Central and Haryana governments to accept the demand for a separate SGPC for Haryana in a conference convened by the Haryana Sikh Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee (ad hoc) here on Monday.

They said if the government failed to do so, the Sikhs would forcibly take over the control of gurdwaras located in the state.

Setting the stage for a major confrontation between the Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee and the HSGPC (ad hoc), the speakers gave a clarion call to Haryana Sikhs to rise to the occasion and liberate the gurdwaras located in the state from shackles of the SGPC, controlled by the Akali Dal and Punjab Chief Minister Prakash Singh Badal.

The conference held at Dera Karsewa here adopted a resolution urging the union government to direct the Haryana government to enact a law for constitution of a separate SGPC for the state under Section 72 of the Punjab Reorganisation Act or annul the Reorganisation Act itself to end all disputes between Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh.

Cautioning the Haryana government of dire consequences in case of further delay in enacting the relevant law, the conference authorised the HSGPC (ad hoc) to constitute a 45-member committee representing all areas of the state to take over the management and control of all gurdwaras located in the state.

It warned that the state government would be fully responsible for the consequences of any such action forced on them as the Sikhs in the state were prepared to make any sacrifice for this cause.

Through another resolution, the conference asked the Haryana Pradesh Congress Committee to implement the election promise to constitute a separate SGPC for Haryana on the pattern of the Delhi SGPC and urged the Akali Dal to stop meddling with the religious affairs of Haryana Sikhs.

Accusing political parties of exploiting Sikhs of Haryana for electoral gains, the conference unanimously decided to safeguard their own interests.

The resolutions were adopted by the HSGPC (ad hoc) and put to vote in the congregation by general-secretary Didar Singh Nalvi.