AMRITSAR: The five Sikh high priests were, on Tuesday successful in bringing about a rethinking among the Akali Dal (Badal) leaders on the issue of complete unity among the various Akali Dals.

The meeting ended after seven and a half hours without any decisive outcome. After the meeting the Akal Takhi jathedar, Prof. Manjit Singh said that both the factions had agreed in principle to forge unity but they had been given 10 days to take the unity process forward after taking their respective working committees into confidence. Both sides have been told to reappear at the Akal Takht on January 23. The jathedar said that the Akalis had also given a written pledge that none of them or their supporters will issue statements against each other. He said that at the coming Magii mela, there will be only one Akali stage.

Mr. Prakash Singh Badal told media persons that they had neither refused nor committed themselves to any point. They had only agreed to the issues discussed in the party working committee whose meeting would be called “soon.”

However, observers point out that the very fact that the meeting continued for more than seven hours indicates that earnest efforts were made by the leaders of both the camps to hammer out the contentious issues between them. Had the Badal group stuck to its avowed stand that unity was impossible owing to basic differences of principle and programs between the two camps, the meeting would have been over in a few hours?

Earlier, Prof. Manjit Singh, while addressing a gathering of supporters of both the factions in front of the Akal Takht, had given a veiled warning to all the “betrayers and detractors of the panth.

Setting the tone for the meeting, Mr. Manjit Singh quoted Sikh history to caution that the panth bad never forgiven the leaders who betrayed its cause.

Besides Mr. Badal, others who responded positively to the summons issued by the Jathedar included Mr. Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa, Mr. Balwinder singh Bhunder, Mr. Parkash Singh Majitha, Mr. Kuldip Singh Wadala. Mr. Ranjit Singh Branmpura and Mr. Gurdev Singh Badal from the Badal faction, and the Shiromoni Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) president, Mr. Gurcharan Singh Tohra, Mr. Sukhjinder Singh, Mr. Jagdev Singh Talwandi, Mr. Surjit singh Bamala, Mr. Amarjit Singh and Mr. Manjit Singh, all members of the Akali Dal (Amritsar) ad hoc committee

Prof Manjit Singh said that antipathy elements and non-believers had conspired to humiliate and denigrate the Sikhs by keeping the Akali leaders divided such forces also include the leaders of the day. He said, hinting at what was in store for Mr. Badal in case he refused the tow the line that betrayers and detractor of the panth had always been excommunicated.

Article extracted from this publication >>  January 13, 1995