3 min readMay 22, 2023 03:00 AM IST
First published on: May 22, 2023 at 02:44 AM IST
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Sunday questioned the rationale behind the exclusive rights to a Punjabi television network, PTC, for telecasting Gurbani from the Golden Temple. The controversial issue around the channel associated with former deputy CM Sukhbir Singh Badal has has been is political crosshairs for sometime now.
This is the second attack on Sukhbir Badal’s businesses by the AAP government. Only two days ago, Cabinet minister Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal had indicated action against Badal owned Sukhvilas Resorts alleging an encroachment.
On Sunday, a government statement quoted Mann questioning the rationale behind extending the rights to telecast Gurbani from Sachkhand Harmandir Sahib, Amritsar, to only one channel.
The statement added that the CM said that the state government is ready to bear all the expenditure to install high-end techniques so that the Gurbani can be telecasted on all the channels, free of cost. Mann, however, did not name PTC in the statement. The CM said that this is the need of the hour to disseminate the ‘Sarb Sanjhi Gurbani’ across the globe with an aim to spread the universal message of ‘Sarbat da Bhala’ (welfare of all). He said that it is strange that only one channel has been given exclusive rights for the telecast of Gurbani from Darbar Sahib. Mann said that these rights should be given free of cost to all the channels rather than confining it to a single channel.
He added that this endeavour will go a long way in offering an opportunity to the Sangat to listen to the blissful Gurbani while sitting at their homes even abroad. Likewise, he said that it will also allow the people to have a glimpse (darshan didar) Harmandar Sahib on their TV sets or other gadgets.
SGPC president Harjinder Singh Dhami, in his reply to the CM, said that the SGPC was capable of handling the affairs of gurdwaras. He asked the CM not to create suspicion in the minds of the Sangat by tweeting on such issues.
He reminded the CM that jurisdictions of the governments and the religious affairs were different. He said that as far as the government was concerned it was found wanting on projects it should have handled. He told the CM that the heritage corridor outside the Golden Temple was in bad shape, the road leading to the religious place was also in bad shape. He said the money possessed by the government was people’s money and it should be spent on projects and the CM should not create suspicion among the minds of people by talking about spending money on telecast of Gurbani.
SGPC president Harjinder Singh Dhami, in his reply to the CM, said that the SGPC was capable of handling the affairs of gurdwaras. (Express Photo) 
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