Chandigarh — Before quitting their respective offices on Saturday the three top Akali leaders, Mr. Longowal, Mr. Badal and Mr. Tohra had suggested a compromise formula to S. Joginder Singh to avert the current crisis in Akali politics.
The deadline for receiving S. Joginder Singh’s response was fixed at 3 p.m. on Saturday. After waiting for another hour their resignations were announced.
According to informed sources the compromise formula carried by Mr. Gurcharan Singh Tohra, the President of the Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak committee on Friday envisaged the reconstruction of the ‘‘ad hoc’’ committee to run the Akali Dal’s affairs.
The reconstituted committee was proposed to include S. Joginder Singh, Mr. Harchard Singh Longowal, Mr. Parkash Singh Badal, Mr. Tohra, Mr. Jagdev Singh Talwandi and one nominee each of the last four leaders. One suggestion was that the responsibility of leading the committee could be _ collectively shared by S. Joginder and Mr. Longowal.
Apparently the proposal did not find favour with S. Joginder Singh and his supporters who had earlier claimed that since S. Joginder Singh had been authorized in writing by the presidents of the rival Akali factions, to forge panthic unity it was his prerogative to take whatever steps he found necessary to forge panthic unity.
The father of Bhindranwale had on May 1 merged both the Akali Dals and set up a nine member “‘ad hoc committee’ to run the Akali affairs. Besides Mr. Jagjit Singh Rode, his eldest son and the four Akali leaders the other three members of the committee are IAS, IPS, and IFS officers who are either in jail or abroad. §. Joginder Singh is now virtually the leader of the ad hoc committee.
But the resignations of Mr. Longowal, Mr. Badal and Mr. Tohra from the leadership of the Akali Dal, the Akali legislature party and the SGPC respectively are treated as a protest against the formation of the “ad hoc” committee.
Article extracted from this publication >> May 24, 1985
