RS clears bill to exclude Sehajdhari Voters

The Rajya Sabha on Wednesday passed the Sikh Gurdwaras (Amendment) Bill. The bill was introduced in Rajya Sabha which envisages to amend 91-year-old Sikh Gurdwaras Act to exclude Sehajdhari Sikhs from voting in elections to Sikh religious bodies.

The Sikh Gurdwaras Act, 1925 was a piece of legislation in British India, which legally defined Sikh identity and brought Sikh gurdwaras (houses of worship) under the control of an elected body of orthodox Sikhs.

The bill was introduced in the House by Union home minister Rajnath Singh. The bill proposes to remove the exception given to Sehajdhari Sikhs in 1944 to vote in the elections to select the members of the board and the committees constituted under the act.

The bill was passed by Rajya Sabha unanimously without any discussion.

The final go-ahead would require one more step, though. After Parliament nod, the matter would go to the Supreme Court for reversing its orders of freezing the SGPC general body elected in the 2011.

EARLIER HITCH

Sehajdharis are believed to be ‘gradual adopters’ of Sikhism. This debarment had been done in 2003, too, but that decision was struck down in 2011 by the Punjab and Haryana high court, on a petition by the Sehajdhari Sikh Federation (SSF). Reason: While the Union home ministry had made the amendment only by way of a notification, the law required it to be passed through Parliament.

This led to vacuum as the 2011 quashing came just after 170 members of the SGPC general house had been elected. The SGPC therefore moved the Supreme Court which ruled that the executive body functional before the 2011 polls continue to run the day-to-day affairs. Makkar remained president in that executive.

“By amending the act with retrospective effect, there will be no further litigation as it would make the 2011 SGPC election valid. We want the elected body functional,” said SAD spokesman Daljit Singh Cheema. He refused to comment on the fate of Makkar.

Apart from the 170 elected members, there are 15 co-opted members too. As per the procedure, this general house would elect a 15-member executive headed by the president.

How Makkar faces exit

• Union cabinet clears home ministry’s proposal to amend Sikh Gurdwaras Act of 1925 to debar Sehajdhari Sikhs from voting in elections of Sikh religious bodies; approval from parliament expected easily
• With that, petition against earlier debarment notification would become meaningless, paving way for SGPC general body of 2011 to be functional
• That ‘re-activated’ general body would elect fresh executive, and new SGPC prez in place of Avtar Singh Makkar expected to be picked