Tohra makes peace with offer to quit

Tohra, who had convened a meeting of the house on March 22, said “April 15 is not far off as it is a matter of just 24 days as per the notice of convening the house by the president (Tohra himself).”

However, 103 pro-Badal SGPC members had called the general house meeting on their own on March 16 describing the notice of convening of the house by Tohra as ambiguous.

“Nothing is going to happen if I am allowed to remain in thepost for 24 days, but if I am removed by flouting the hukumnama, it would denigrate the glorious Sikh tradition, tenets and Sikh institutions,” Tohra said.

He said the hukumnama issued by the Akal Takht Jathedar on December 31 was still in force advising all the concerned Akali groups and their leaders to rise above their personal interests and differences in order to observe the tercentenary celebrations of birth of Khalsa unitedly.

At the same time, loyalists of Badal accused Tohra of injecting poison into the spirit of the Khalsa tercentenary and increased the decibel against the SGPC chief.

Reports say 24 out of 27 district presidents of the party, in a joint statement, also demanded strict disciplinary action against Tohra loyalists who were trying to damage the party, Panth and Punjab.

Tohra precipitated the ongoing controversy against him after his angry outburst on the issue of suspended’ Akal Takht Jathedar Bhai Ranjit Singh leading the Hola Mohalla procession.

They also attacked him fortrying to bring down the democratically elected Badal government in connivance with the Congress.

These leaders referred to media reports about a conspiracy involving CPM general secretary Harkishan Singh Surjeet, Congress president Sonia Gandhi and Tohra to destabilise the Badal government.