Chandigarh, October 23, 2017: The population of Sehajdhari Sikhs in Himachal Pardesh seems to be approximately 1.5 lakh and in 2011 SGPC elections the Gurdwara Election Commission have registered 55000 keshdhari Sikh voters on record in HP. These 1.5 lakh Sehajdharis are a big challenge for the BJP in Himachal Pardesh vidhan sabha elections as they will be giving a signal to the Modi led National Democratic Alliance to stop dreaming for its mission 2019 for a repeat in the Country said Dr.P.S.Ranu National President of the Sehajdhari Sikh Party.
During Maharaja Ranjit Singh’s time the Dogras, Rajputs, Thakurs, Jaswals, Pathanias, Chandel, and Bandeshas of this State were related with old Punjab who are Sehajdharis and it’s a matter of record in the history that Maharja Ranjit Singh respected them as Sikhs as they are having faikth in philosophy of Shri Guru Nanak.
Dr.Ranu said that the Sehajdhari Sikh Party has always supported the Congress Party and now in Himachal and Gujrat poll the Sehajdharis are planning to extend their support to the INC and will expose the anti-panthic and anti minority face of the BJP allied NDA Govt. which has divided the Sikh minority on voting rights issue in the SGPC elections by making amendments in the Sikh Gurdwara Act through Parliament on the behest of the Shiromani Akali Dal Badal. He said that it was the agenda of the Anti-Sikh RSS led BJP which has created a sub-minority within the minority in Sikhism by doing so.
The opposition parties had already started labeling the Sehajdhari Sikh Party as a ‘B’ team of Congress in Punjab as it has been a staunch supporter of Captain Amarinder Singh. The victory of Sunil Jakkhar in Gurdaspur bypoll had already setup a mile stone for the Congress in the Country at the Centre for 2019 and Captain Amarinder gets the credit to rejuvenate Congress in the Country claimed the Sehajdhari Sikh Party.
Dr.Ranu said that as per the records of the Gurdwara Election Commission in 2011 there were 55000 keshdhari Sikh voters in Himachal Pardesh for the lone one seat of SGPC and approximately 1.5 lakh Sehajdhari Sikhs were debarred from voting due to the Notification of the NDA led Union Govt. Now the majority of the Sikhs with Shorn hairs who are labeled as Patits and Sehajdharis by the Akalidal and SGPC will get a chance to express their grievance through ballot against the BJP-Akali alliance which has divided our minority for petty gains to capture the Gurdwaras to siphon off the public funds of donations for their election motives.
Its mentionable that the Sehajdhari Sikh Party has already challenged the amendment done by the Parliament in Punjab and Haryana High Court as the Supreme Court has granted them liberty to challenge the ‘constitutional validity of the amendment’ and the High Court has issued notice to the Union Government and the State Govt. of Punjab where the next hearing is scheduled for 27 November 2017.