Akal Takht revokes pardon granted to Dera Sacha head Gurmeet Ram Rahim

Amritsar: Bowing to pressure from the Sikh community and hardliners, the Akal Takht, the supreme temporal seat of the Sikhs, on Friday annulled its edict pardoning Dera Sacha Sauda sect chief Gurmit Ram Rahim Singh in a 2007 blasphemy case.

At a special meeting held at the Akal Takht, the Sikh clergy headed by Jathedar Gyani Gurbachan Singh decided to annul its earlier edict issued on September 24 whereupon the Sirsa-based sect head was pardoned for appearing in an attire of Guru Gobind Singh during a religious congregation.

After a marathon meeting at the secretariat of the Akal Takht, the Sikh clergy said the Gurumata (edict) of September 24 pardoning the Dera chief has been annulled since it was not acceptable to the Sikh community by and large.

"Keeping in view the sentiments of the community, the Sikh clergy decided to annul the earlier edict as the Dera chief is not a real saint and his apology was not acceptable to Akal Takht," Gyani Gurbachan Singh in a statement.

The Akal Takht had pardoned the chief of Dera Sacha Sauda Sect on the basis of a written apology sent by him through his messenger.

In his apology letter, the Dera chief said that he could never think of copying the Tenth Sikh master Guru Gobind Sigh since he had a deep regard for all Sikh masters.

The Sect chief, who had been accused of impersonating as Guru Gobind Singh, said he never compared himself with any spiritual master or saint and hence could not dare to copy the personality of a saint.

The Sikh community, hardliners, and various other outfits were upset at the Akal Takht's move pardoning the Dera chief without him making a personal appearance before the temporal seat of the Sikhs.

As per Sikh rituals and norms, any guilty person cannot be pardoned unless he physically appears before the Takht.