By IANS,
Chandigarh : Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal Friday sought the intervention of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to stop the Delhi government from going ahead with its move to amend the procedure of Gurdwara elections in Delhi.
The Punjab chief minister said the move was “dangerous”, and the Delhi government was needlessly attempting to “interfere in the religious affairs of the Sikh community”.
In a letter to the prime minister, Badal urged him to ensure that elections to the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (DSGMC) are held in accordance with the letter and spirit of directions earlier issued by the Supreme Court.
A violent clash between two groups, one owing allegiance to the Congress and the other to the Shiromani Akali Dal, at Gurdwara Rakabganj in New Delhi Thursday left 11 people injured.
Expressing anguish over the incident, Badal said it was a “direct consequence of the chain of events unleashed by the totally unjustified and provocative move of the Delhi government to interfere in the religious affairs of the Sikhs through a proposed amendment to the electoral procedure in the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee”.
Badal pointed out that he had raised this matter earlier also.
“Unfortunately, my pleas remained unattended. Yesterday’s events have further confirmed the fears in the minds of the Sikh masses that the Congress government in Delhi is bent upon creating problems for the community for narrow political ends. This is a dangerous development and does not augur well for the future,” his letter stated.