Jathedar Of Akal Takht Joginder Singh Vedanti Resigns !

[Nirvair S Khalsa]

Would Dera Sacha Sauda chief appear before Akal Takht ?

PATIALA: The chief of Dera Sacha Sauda, Sirsa Gurmit Ram Rahim is likely to appear before Akal Takhat Sahib after August 7 ?

Highly placed sources said here on Tuesday that Baba will appear Akal Takhat unconditionally to tender his apology regarding his act of mimicker as the Sikhs' revered 10th Guru and mocked the sacred and historic Amrit Sanchar ceremony of Vaisakhi 1699, at his dera last year.

Sources said that if all things will happened accordingly Baba will appear soon after the assumption of charge of new head of Akal Takhat Giani Gurbachan Singh.

Relations between the followers of the Dera Sacha Sauda sect and mainstream Sikhs have been soured for almost a year now.

Dera chief had sparked a huge uproar by the Sikhs last year when Ram Rahim allegedly tried to imitate the dress and activities of the last Sikh Guru Guru Gobind Singh.

The move enraged the Sikh community which demanded an apology from him. Later, Ram Rahim tendered an apology, saying he had no intention of hurting the sentiments of the Sikhs, but the Sikh clerics rejected the apology.

Now with the resignation of Giani Joginder SIngh Vedanti the way of his exoneration has been cleared, said sources.

http://www.punjabnewsline.com/content/view/11534/38/

[Nirvair S Khalsa]

Praising PM led to Akal Takht top priest's removal

Image: Joginder Singh Vedanti on his way to pay obeisance at the Golden Temple at Amritsar after submitting his resignation on Tuesday.

What led to the sacking of Joginder Singh Vedanti as the head priest of Akal Takht, the highest temporal seat of the Sikhs?

"I was sacked," said Vedanti, "because I supported Prime Minister Manmohan Singh during the crucial trust vote."

It is learnt that a top delegation of the Shiromani Gurdwara Prabhandak Committee, including its president Avtar Singh Makkar, general secretary Sukhdev Singh Bahur and executive committee member Rajinder Singh Mehta rushed to Vedanti to collect his resignation letter. Though they deny that they were involved, Vedanti told rediff.com on Wednesday that he was forced to resign and Giani Gurbachan Singh was appointed in his place."Some days ago, the three of them came to me and asked me to resign. They were very angry and told me that some of my remarks had upset their political partners. I told them that Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh, as a Sikh, has done the nation proud. If that has upset their political partners, then I don't have anything to say. I would say the same about Dr Singh again. He is honest and a true Sikh," Vedanti told rediff.com in a candid conversation.

It is said Vedanti helped the prime minister in framing his speech during the trust vote, at least in the parts where he referred to Guru Gobind Singh.

To pacify the agitated officials who reportedly asked for his resignation at the instance of Punjab Chief Minister Prakash Singh Badal, Vedanti wrote out the resignation letter and handed it over to Bahur.

"The moment they got the letter, they left. Appointments are done and cancelled, I have no quarrels. But I was pained at the manner in which it was carried out," he said.

Makkar, however, denied Vedanti's claim.

"We are willing to distribute copies of the resignation letter to the media to prove that it was written in his own handw," Makkar told this correspondent.

Eleven out of the 13 executive committee members voted in favour of Vedanti's resignation while Karnail Singh Panjoli and Gurwinder Singh alleged that the letter was written under duress.

Vedanti has also been accused of supporting the demand for a separate homeland for Sikhs during his recent trip to the United States.

"I never made such statements. You can browse newspapers in the US during that period. What I said was that wherever the Sikhs go, they carve out a separate state for themselves and our homeland has no boundaries. I still stand by that statement," Vedanti clarified.

Vedanti also came under attack for his poor handling of the Akali-Dera row and the Sant Samaj had sought his resignation. With Lok Sabha elections around the corner, Badal did not want to take any chances but wanted to keep the Sant Samaj happy.

Giani Gurbachan Singh, who has been appointed temporary head of the Akal Takht in Vedanti's place, has risen from being an ordinary sewadar to the religion's highest temporal post.

http://specials.rediff.com/news/2008/aug/06onkar.htm

[Nirvair S Khalsa]

Akal Takht head quits under duress

AMRITSAR: In a development that has unleashed a storm in the Sikh community, Akal Takht jathedar Giani Joginder Singh Vedanti quit his post in the highest Sikh temporal body on Tuesday, claiming he did it under duress.

The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), however, quickly refuted the charge and said Vedanti had quit on his own. “He had cited ill-health as the reason for resignation,” SGPC chief Avtar Singh Makkar said. “The committee has accepted the jathedar’s letter and appointed Sri Harmandir Sahib head granthi Giani Gurbachan Singh as the acting jathedar of Akal Takht. The new jathedar will join office from August 7.”

Sticking to his guns, an angry Vedanti said the SGPC general secretary, Sukhdev Singh Bhaur, and executive member Rajinder Singh Mehta had visited his residence the night before and asked him to put in his papers. His personal assistant Prithipal Singh went on to say that the visitors had expressed their helplessness in the matter and maintained it was Makkar’s orders.

What may, however, have precipitated the latest crisis clouding the Akal Takht is the recent displeasure articulated by chief minister Parkash Singh Badal after Vedanti was heard praising prime minister Manmohan Singh, a fellow Sikh, just ahead of the trust vote on the Indo-US nuclear deal in Parliament. “Jathedars should not be getting involved in political matters,” a miffed Badal had said. “Although, I am in no position to say anything to the Akal Takht jathedar, I think he should not be getting into such things.”

Vedanti had apparently gone further and said, “Dr Manmohan Singh is a kind man and Sikhs should be supporting him.” This had come at a time when a section of the Sikh diaspora had demand that fellow community members support the PM on the nuke deal.

The jathedar’s removal triggered a swift reaction within hours of the announcement from Sikhs both in India and across the world, many of whom reacted with concern and cynicism. Terming it “an unfortunate practice”, veteran Akali leader Manjit Singh Calcutta said, “SAD(B) has been removing high priests since 1999”. He alleged that the chief minister was using the influence of Takht as well as Sikh Gurdwara Judicial Commission to promote vested interests.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Chandig...how/3330992.cms

[Nirvair S Khalsa]

Akal Takht jathedar 'forced' to quit

The Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC) on Monday forced Joginder Singh Vedanti, jathedar of the Sikhs highest temporal body, the Akal Takht, to quit his position.

"Without citing any reason they told me to either sign the resignation letter citing ill health as my reason of my stepping down, or face expulsion. I had no choice," said Vedanti.

The SGPC promptly accepted Vedanti's resignation at its scheduled Executive Committee meeting in Kurukshetra on Monday, and elevated the Harmandar Sahib Head Granthi Gurbachan Singh to Acting Jathedar in his place. The dissenting notes of executive Members Karnail Singh Panjauli and Gurwinder Singh Shampura, who challenged the criteria used to appoint and remove Jathedars, were ignored

Sources told Hindustan Times that Vedanti had to pay the price of showering praise on Prime Minister Manmohan Singh a couple of days before the UPA government faced the trust vote in Parliament on July 22. Although Vedanti did not issue any hukumnama (religious directive) supporting Manmohan Singh, he did praise Singh for being the symbol of Sikh identity the world over and for his clean image.

Vedanti's remarks are believed to have ruffled both Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal and his son Sukhbir, who heads the Shiromani Akali Dal. The SAD, which has an alliance with the BJP, supported the opposition in the trust vote. Even earlier, Vedanti's decision to attend a pro-Khalistan conference in the US had also raised the hackles of the moderates in the party.

Vedanti was at his official residence when on behalf of SGPC president Avtar Singh Makkar, executive members Sukhdev Singh Bhaur and Rajinder Singh Mehta approached him around 9pm and told him to sign the resignation letter.

SPGC president Avtar Singh Makkar denied that Vedanti had been forced to quit.

http://www.hindustantimes.com/storypage/st...ent=strParentID

[Nirvair S Khalsa]

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/slideshow/msid-3331009.cms

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/slideshow/msid-3331005.cms

[xHarinder_singh]

I just enquired about Giani Gurbachan Singh jee from a very reliable source. He has taksali background and is a very honest nice person, well respected person. He shud turn out to be a better jathedaar than Vedanti jee, who was weak and was easliy used by Badal.

So all the best to Giani Gurbachan Singh Jee.

All the best to Vedanti Jee too, he can now concentrate on bhagti and make him manukha janam safall.

[Jasmit Kaur]

lol

trust u wont be hearing anything bad about giani gurbachan singh jee

thats for sure

[xHarinder_singh]

lol

trust u wont be hearing anything bad about giani gurbachan singh jee

thats for sure

I hope so. But I will also make a very good jathedaar. Something tells me that in this life I will become jathedaar of Akal Takht. This intution I get is very strong.

[S1ngh]

Singh Sahib Giani Gurbachan Singh jee is the best choice for the Akal Takht Jatehdar.

[Mehtab Singh]

I also want to become jathedar of Akal Takht. Is there any sangat out here voting me to be the jathedar ?

How much commission will I get?