Punjab Assembly polls 2017- Part XI

At a time when the political atmosphere in the state is in turmoil, any attempt to soothe Punjabis for their anger results in more unrest and acts as salt over their wounds. In the tenth article of this series, I threw light on the farmer unrest and the Dera Chief’s pardon row, and now in the sequel it is apt to discuss about the aftermaths of the same. There is no denying the fact that religion of the majority community of the state i.e. Sikhism has acquired center-stage in today’s political landscape of the state especially after the desecration incidents of the holy Sri Guru Granth Sahib on multiple occasions. Two youths have lost their lives in the aftermath as a clash erupted between the police and the sikh protesters in Kotkapura. On the other hand, “Panj Piaras”- the five beloveds have summoned all the Jathedars of the five takhts for pardoning the Dera Chief- Gurmeet Ram Rahim. I believe that it is a very bold decision but the timing of this decision isn’t right. The decision of summoning the Jathedars would’ve been much more meaningful before they took a U-turn on the pardon row. It was only after the sikh high priests cancelled their pardon, the five beloveds summoned the high priests and paid the consequences.

The five beloveds who are actually the paid employees of SGPC and are playing a symbolic role of the five real beloveds i.e. Bhai Daya Singh ji, Dharam Singh ji, Himmat Singh ji, Mohkam Singh ji and Sahib Singh ji. It wasn’t of much surprise to see the five beloveds suspended and then reinstated again by the SGPC president Avtar Singh Makkar. This whole episode actually seems to be a pre-planned drama to exhibit the superiority of the rational-legal autority over the traditional/ charismatic authority. And this is the fact that we sikhs mustn’t deny. Sikhism has lost its traditional glory in the era of modernization where the rational legal authority is considered above the traditional or the charismatic authority and similarly the professional elites have replaced the traditional/ religious elites. It’s not that I’m putting forward only theoretical concepts but a practical example to substantiate my argument is the 1984 incident which resulted in the demolition of Sri Akal Takht sahib. I feel more than disturbed to share this photo:

Let us stop living in denial as Sikhs and as Indians because this photo proves that the power and glory of Sri Akal Takht sahib was overshadowed by the Indian Army on the orders of the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. Though PM is the second highest constitutional office of the country which is below the President who is the supreme commander of the Indian Armed forces. The incumbent President at that time Giani Zail Singh couldn’t do anything as the President is more of a symbolic head of the state in India and the real power lie with the PM and his cabinet. My point here is that deadly force was used on the behest of the constitutional authorities of the country from being overshadowed by a traditional politico-religious institution. I have always advocated that Akal Takhat should be treated as an extra-constitutional authority as the successors of the same Congress government have set an example by introducing  the concept of UPA-chairperson who very well exercised her extra-constitutional authority over the Prime Minister of India for 10 years.

Well I think the need of the hour is to bring forward those sikh leaders who not only practice sikh ideals in their life but are also aware of the intricacies of the Indian polity and have a global vision. Only such leaders can counter the rampant “panthic-crisis” in the state. The entire politico-religious turmoil is definitely complicating things for the the novice party that is looking forward to enter the poll arena in 2017 but I believe that a hypothetical alliance or an alliance of situational benefit can prove to be fruitful for AAP if it collaborates with some panthic party that hasn’t established much base in the state assembly or the local governments (like municipal corporations, Zila parishads, Panchayats etc.). Parties like SAD (Amritsar), SAD (United) or SAD (Panch Pardhani) may have a meager presence in the SGPC (considered to be the Mini-sikh-Parliament) but in order to make their voice heard even at the panthic level, they need to strengthen their presence in the mainstream government institutions. As I mentioned in my article Current Sikh Politics, it is natural for SGPC to act as a second fiddle to the most influential political parties in the region and its loyalty will automatically gets gravitated towards the mainstream political party in the region except Congress even if it comes to power as it has a bad reputation with the radical sikh outfits. SGPC’s lack of autonomy and government-dependence increases when the lucrative benefits like police protection, red beacons, pilot gypsies and Z+ security covers are extended to the Jathedars and Office-bearers of SGPC. These benefits are immaterial for religious leaders who don’t have any genuine threat assessment.

Coming back to the hypothetical alliance, it is worth doing a comparative analysis of the two personalities who have successfully cracked UPSC Civil services, acquired high ranks in bureaucracy and then given it up to join mainstream politics. One is the incumbent Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal who in considered to play a decisive role in the upcoming polls. The other one is an aged sikh leader Simranjit Singh Mann who was an IPS officer until June 1984 and resigned from Indian Police Services as a mark of protests for the demolition Sri Akal Takhat Sahib. Many sikhs resigned from elite services at the time to protest against the demolition of the Takht but Simranjit Singh Mann’s name stands out because he has wholely-solely dedicated his life to the panthic cause ever since. He has also created some fuss in the politico-religious space of the state out of his proximity and family ties with the former CM of the state Capt. Amrinder Singh. He can create a place in the mainstream politics of Punjab if he softens his stand on the separatist ideology. Unlike the media-friendly Bhagwant Mann and Arvind Kejriwal who are comfortable with the limelight and are interested in forming the government in the state, Simranjit Singh Mann is currently an inert geek who prefers to keep a low profile and is feared by many political honchos of the state as his ways aren’t much pro-government. Mann is also a 2-time MP from Tarn Taran and Sangrur in 1989 and 1999 respectively.

Though the current Badal government has been taking some hard decisions recently, like removal of the Badal-loyalist Saini as the DGP of the state, as a face-saving exercise, it'll be interesting to see Punjab government's take on "Sarbat Khalsa" as SGPC has denied the interested "Jathebandis" on holding it in the Golden Temple complex. I'm sure that Badal government will try its best to look pro-panthic before the Sikh congregation and could take some more hard decisions and could go to the extent of demanding the resignation of the SGPC President, another Badal loyalist. It'll be interesting to watch the turn of events in the near future.

Current SIKH politics

With the announcement of the date of "Sarbat Khalsa" i.e. Nov 10, 2015, there are mixed responses of excitement, anxiety, nervousness and tension in the state. The current Sikh leadership is clearly divided in two factions i.e. "in-the-government" and "not-in-the-government", and government here means Punjab government. There is no denying that Sikhism and Khalsa-hood is no longer a phenomenon restricted to Punjab, people need to have clear view of the fact that running the government in this part of the world isn't a child's play. Even if some sikh has acquired an executive rank in the govt. i.e. IAS/ IPS/ PCS, he/ she can prove to be of indispensable value to the community, and those who acquire ministerial offices somehow emerge as Global faces of the community, Punjab being the place of its origin. Moreover, I don't see any non-Punjabi or NRI individual or organization who can assert itself over Punjabi Ministers and dictate terms to them for day to day working of the sikh shrines in India/ Punjab.

Though I'm not affiliated to any political party, all the parties and "Jathebandis" need to introspect on the fact that how much say/ presence they have in the Punjab government. They simply need to introspect that how many Ministers, MP's, MLA's and Councillors, they have and then make a move for the Sarbat Khalsa. The importance and agenda for the same needs to be redefined as the outrage after Dera Chief's pardon was made the basic issue for calling upon the convention. If this were the case the call for the Sarbat Khalsa holds no value after Akal Takht's U-turn on the pardon row.

Of course, the integrity of the SGPC is being challenged here but the premier sikh body too needs to free its loyalty from the government control. With the nature of work that SGPC does it is natural that its loyalty gets gravitated towards the most influential party in the region but then it narrows down the perspective of Sikhism and Khalsahood and confines it to Punjab only.

As an author it seems very easy for me to question the integrity of various political parties or "Jathe-bandis" who are interested to have a say in the sikh politics but I simply need to send across a message to all the Indian or Non- Indian sikh outfits who are looking forward to take part in "Sarbat Khalsa" convention to maintain the sanctity of the institution where sikh politics is rooted.

Punjab Assembly polls 2017 - Part X

It is the perfect time to shoot an article where Punjab polity is burning with both left-wing and right-wing issues. The left-wing issue being the crisis situation being faced by the farmers of the Malwa region after the white-fly attack on the cotton crop which has resulted in the destruction of the crop spread over lakhs of acres of farms. And the right-wing issue being the "Pardon row" of the Dera Chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh in the case of his impersonation like the revered Guru Gobind Singh ji in 2007. Though both these issues have gained tremendous mileage in the political space but at the ground level the farmer issue is gaining more ground and economics definitely is overpowering religion as far as local politics is concerned.

Though the incumbent Jathedars of Takhts and the SGPC office-bearers are trying their best to project that it was a unanimous decision of the entire community, there are many radical sikh outfits who have openly shown their resentment towards this decision following which they announced "Sarbat Khalsa" to be held this Diwali and called for a state-wide "Bandh" on 30 Sept 2015. The "Bandh" got a lukewarm response as majority of the establishments remained open on the day which indicates that the government machinery i.e. the police and the paramilitary forces will be used to the fullest extent to curb the "Sarbat Khalsa" event to be held this Diwali and it will be reduced to a ceremonial event without having much substantial value and the resolutions passed may not much effect the political landscape of the sikh-community in Punjab.

On the other hand, the farmers are on a spree for demanding the compensation for the losses they've incurred out of the white-fly attack. Majority of them are demanding as much as 40,000- 80,000 INR per acre for the same and are not ready to settle for anything less. They're holding Dharnas, blocking highways and rail tracks and shooing away many politicians from the venues of their agitations. They simply want monetary compensation for their losses and not promises. They've even roughed up many intellectuals like the Vice Chancellor of Punjab Agricultural University who tried to address their issues. They are deeply enraged by the government moves as some of them have got cheques amounting to 150 - 200 INR against their humongous demand of 40,000 INR  per acre. This has made them feel more humiliated and they are intensifying their protests further.

Also from a broader perspective there are many strong opinions floating for the current trend of personality politics in India. Buzz is that in this era where personality politics has acquired center-stage across the country, Punjab is likely to witness a Captain-wave in 2017 Assembly elections just like India witnessed Modi-wave in 2014 Parliamentary elections.

On one hand Modi enjoys being the undisputed or unprecedented show-stopper of Indian politics where he asserts the power of the office he is holding over the states and woos the crowd with his charisma. This trend was best visible in Bihar when he made a visit to Bihar prior to the assembly elections and announced a package of 1.25 lakh crore INR for the state. This has dramatically improved BJP's (or NDA's) chances in sweeping away the Bihar assembly. A similar package for Punjab which is already crying foul for money could bring back SAD-BJP alliance back in power with a bigger share of BJP this time.  I believe only one man stands between SAD-BJP and their victory in 2017 Assembly elections and that is Captain Amrinder Singh, the former CM of Punjab who is equipped with the acumen to address both the left-wing and the right-wing issues of the state. Even if AAP promises corruption-free environment and good governance in the state, it cannot give what Punjab instantly needs i..e. Money in the form of relief packages, which only Modi can provide having control over the funds of the central government.

Now this is where serious Blogging and political analysis begins as the 2017 polls approach nearer.