FATEHGARH SAHIB: On the call given by Akal Takht the Sikh organisations including SGPC, Nihang Singh sects, Shiromani Akali Dal activists Thursday took out a peaceful march from Gurdawara Fatehgarh Sahib to Gurdawara Jyoti swaroop at Fatehgarh Sahib to protest against actions of dera Sacha Sauda. 

In an unpredented move, the ADC's of Punjab and Haryana governors reached at Fatehgarh Sahib to receive the memorendum from 11 member panel constituted to go to Chandigarh for the purpose. The committee headed by SGPC president Avtar Singh Makkar submitted the memorendum outside Gurdawara persmises.

Others present on the occassion included SGPC senior vice president Raghujit Singh Virk, Damdami Takhsal chief Harnam Singh Khalsa, Nihal Singh Harian Belan Wale, Hari Singh Randhawa , Gurmail Singh General Secretaries of Sant Samaj, Lakhmir Singh Bilongwale, Balbir Singh, Nihang Chief Budha Dal, Baba Daya Singh Sursinhwale, Baba Avtar Singh and  Baba Jarnail Singh Rara Sahib wale were also present before
taking out the protest march.

Initially, there was a gathering of around 5,000 people inside and outside Gurdwara Fatehgarh Sahib complex around 10 AM before the start of the march.

SAD Acting president Sukhbir Badal also reached at the Gurdwara. SAD PAC members Balwinder Singh Bhundar, Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa, Prem Singh Chandumajra, Randhir Singh Cheema, MP Sharanjit Singh Dhillon, Public Relations Minister Bikramjit Singh Majithia, former SGPC president Kirpal Singh Badungar,  former minister Tota Singh,  Sikh Students Federation president Gurcharan Singh Grewal were also present.

Giani Tarlochan Singh, Jathedar Takht Sri Kesgarh Sahib performed the  ardas’ (religious prayer) inside the main shrine of the Gurdwara Fatehgarh Sahib. He prayed in front of Guru Granth Sahib that a suitable punishment will be awarded to Dera Chief Sacha Sauda by the Almighty, who ‘acted against the Sikh religion’. He further prayed that the participants  should carry out the protest march peacefully and during the protest march, so Sikh should carry unsheathed swords and shout slogans.

Immediately, after the Ardas, all the leaders of various Sikh organizations led by five Singh Sahibans(high priests)- Akal Takht Jathedar Joginder Singh Vedanti, Takht Damdama Sahib Jathedar Balwant Singh Nandgarh, Takht Keshgarh Sahib Jathedar Giani Tarlochan Singh, Takht Patna Sahib Jathedar Giani Iqbal Singh , Golden Temple, Amritsar  Head Granthi Bhai Gurcharan Singh  came out of the main Gurdwara complex and gathered outside the Gurdwara to lead the protest march. The protest march led by a five high priests  and a bus carrying 11 member committee started moving towards Gurdwara Jyoti Swaroop around 10.30 Am.

Just before the start of protest march, Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee president Paramjit Singh Sarna in the presence of SAD(Amritsar) senior vice president Daljit Singh Bitu and former Akal Takht Jathedar Bhai Jasbir Singh Rode  strongly criticized the present government and SGPC for changing their previous programme to take out the protest march from Fatehgarh Sahib to Chandigarh. Sarna  said that they
were totally disagreed with the SGPC and state government on their issue of Dera Sacha Sauda.

The protest march started towards Jyoti Swaroop Gurdwara on foot, some nihangs were  raveling in their private vehicles. An Air Conditioner bus with a banner in Punjabi ‘For memorandum to be submitted to the Governor against Dera Sirsa Chief’ carried all member committee inside it during the protest march. SAD Acting president Sukhbir Badal and other SAD leaders also started moving at the end of the protest march.

When a group led by Daljit Singh Bitu, Paramjit Singh Sarna and Jasbir Singh Rode comprising around 100 members, reached near District Administrative Complex, Fatehgarh Sahib enroute to Gurdwara Jyoti Swaroop, started raising slogans ‘ Sant Jarnail Singh Bhindrawale Zindabad’, ‘Shaheed Kamaljit Singh Amar Rahe’(Kamaljit Singh was killed in firing at Sunam during Dera Sacha Sauda controversy). They stopped shouting these slogans after  five minutes.

A large number of security persons, Punjab police, armed and unarmed standing on the sides of the road was mute specters and they did not intervene. The protest march continue towards Jyoti Swaroop Gurdwara again, after about 10 minutes, when a group led by Sukhbir Badal just passed nearby the Bitu group, the followers of Bitu again started raising slogans. These slogans were shouted by Bitu group in presence of Sarna and Rode intentionally to provide just passing near by Sukhbir Badal and his followers. However Sukhbir Badal and other SAD leaders peacefully passed reciting ‘Satnam Waheguru’. 

Emaan Singh Mann son of Simranjit Singh Mann moved  separately with 50 activists . The protest march reached outside Gurdwara Jyoti Swaroop at around 11.30.  There , a group of some Sikh youths while waiving small posters shouted slogans ‘ Khalistan Zindabad’.

The youths were raising these slogans very loudly and stood in front of the gate of the AC bus from where all 11 member committee was to alight to hand over memorandum to the ADCs to Governors of Punjab and Haryana, who were already waiting near Gurdwara Jyoti Swaroop. The police had put barricades near the Gurdwara chowk leading towards the route to Chandigarh to prevent any movement in that direction. The slogans shouted by handful of youths carried on for around 20 minutes near the bus of the committee. The committee members initially decided not to hand over the memorandum to the ADCs there but suddenly a decision was taken to hand over memorandum to ADCs at the door of the bus and it was handed over in haste with the help of Member Parliament Sharanjit Singh Dhillon and former Punjab Public Service Commission member Amarjit Singh Chawla, who was also in bus.  The  bus immediately  moved towards other side with the committee members. The Sikh youths carried out slogans for another 10 minutes and on two occasion, the police had made efforts to pacify them but they did not listen to police. The police did not use any force and after sometimes, the youths dispersed automatically.

Later, the SGPC president Avtar Singh Makkar reached at the venue where the crowd was listening to speeches of high priests and other dignitaries.  

Akal Takht Jathedar Joginder Singh Vedanti, SGPC president Avtar Singh Makkar, Keshgarh Sahib Jathedar Giani Tarlochan Singh, Takht Damdama Sahib Jathedar Balwant Singh Nandgarh delivered speeches. During their address to people they wholeheartedly thanked to various Sikh organizations for participating in the protest march given against the Dera Sacha Sauha chief. They strongly criticized the Dera chief, who had deeply hurt the Sikh sentiments, which is nonpardonable. The government has been asked through the memorandum to take stern action against the Dera chief and prosecute him by filing criminal case under section 295-A of the IPC and should given maximum punishment and this section should be amended to give life imprisonment. The SGPC and other Sikh religious organisations will intensity the movement to clean the dirt and dust, which has been spread in the Sikh religion by the persons like Dera chief.

The Sikhs were appealed to carry out protests against Dera chief in a peaceful manner and  should not carry unsheathed swords etc, which may jeopardize their movement. A peaceful atmosphere should be maintained.  They said that the Sikh bodies like SGPC should start preaching the Sikh religion in a way where the persons , who had left Sikhism and joined Dera Sacha Sauda, should be brought back to the Sikh religion.

SGPC president categorically hailed the victory of Sikhs on the line that for the first time, the representatives of Governors have themselves approached the Sikh bodies for collecting a memorandum.  He said that a penal of legal luminaries
should be constituted to contest the cases those who committed sons against Sikh religions like Dera Sacha Sauda chief.

They also criticized Dera Head for displaying the religious symbols of Hindus, Sikhs, Muslims and Christians and the government should take stern action against him to prevent him from misusing their religious symbols, which is endangering the national
unity and integration.

During the middle of speeches, the ADCs to Governors of Punjab and Haryana who came by the side of the stage were invited to collect memorandum, which was already delivered to them earlier. 

The protest march concluded after performance of Ardas by Giani Tarlochan Singh around 12.35 PM. No  untoward incident came to notice during the whole protest march except raising the slogans.  There was poor response of people to the protest march and it was not taken in an organized manner. The different groups of  Sant Samaj religious leaders, Nihangs,SAD(Badal group), SAD(Amritsar group) moved in separate groups. 

Around 100 personnel of RAF were deployed at the outskirts of Fatehgarh Sahib on the route towards Chandigarh near Fatehgarh Sahib byepass. There were around 2, 000 security men in uniform and plain clothed deployed enrooted protest march and inside the Gurdwara complex. Patiala Range IG N.K. Tiwari, Fatehgarh Sahib SSP Nilabh Kishore, SAS Nager SSP R.S. Khatra, Fatehgarh Sahib DC Alaknanda Dayal, SAS Nager DC HIS Grewal  supervised the security men arrangements near Gurdwara Jyoti Swaroop and other area.