PATIALA, Jan 3: Commissioner of the Linguistic Minorities Commission of India, Prof Harbhajan Singh Deol, here today, condemned the hukamnama (religious edict) issued by Akal Takht Jathedar Bhai Ranjit Singh, asking the Shiromani Akali Dal leadership not to take any action against the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) president Gurcharan Singh Tohra till April 15 in view of the tercentenary celebrations of the birth of the Khalsa.Talking to media persons here today, Deol said that the "hukamnama had gagged the Sikhs who were a vocal community." Political differences among leaders were nothing new but these did not call for intervention by religious leaders, he said, adding that such actions lowered the esteem of high religious institutions.He said that the hukamnama was a curb on the freedom of speech which was a vital component of a democracy and for which even the Sikh Gurus had fought for. It was the right time for Sikh intellectuals in particular and other intellectuals in general to deliberate on the matter and save high religious institutions from "institutional decay."Deol said the edict had created confusion in the minds of the entire Sikh community, adding that it was a victory of politics over religion.He said that the "rootless and confused advisors of spiritual leaders had behaved in an utterly selfish manner and the Sikhs had been made a laughing stock before the entire country".
