BJP flays Sacha Sauda chief, seeks apology

NEW DELHI: The BJP has accused the Congress of fomenting trouble in Punjab as Sikhs and followers of a Sirsa-based sect leader clashed in the state over his purported depiction in likeness of Guru Gobind Singh.

The BJP said Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh should apologise for allegedly portraying himself as a Sikh guru, an act prohibited in the faith.

"If he does not, the state government should take suitable action as such acts hurt religious sentiments seriously," senior BJP leader Vijay Kumar Malhotra, whose party shares power in Punjab with the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), told reporters here.

Malhotra also alleged Congress links with the trouble in Punjab, citing the Dera leader's alleged call to his followers to vote to re-elect Amarinder Singh as Chief Minister in the state elections.

"It's a Congress attempt to destabilise the Akali-BJP government by creating trouble," he remarked.

Meanwhile, Sikh leaders opposed to Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal also sought action against the Dera leader.

Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (DSGMC) president Paramjit Singh Sarna, who has unseated Badal's party from the religious administration in the capital, telephoned the Punjab Chief Minister and sought action against the Sacha Sauda head.

"This is a very serious religious issue. Nobody can be allowed to portray himself as a Sikh guru. We believe the Akali government and the religious heads would take tough action in this regard," Sarna said.