Takht Patna Sahib Panj Pyaras have extended support to Damdami Taksal head Harnam Singh Khalsa ‘Dhuma’, who is facing criticism from several Sikh quarters over a purported photograph in which he is seen performing a Hindu ritual.The photograph had surfaced online.The Panj Pyaras (Guru’s five beloved ones) said Khalsa had been “unnecessarily criticised by some mischievous anti-Panthic elements out of fear of his popularity and influence”.Takht Patna Sahib management board president Jagjot Singh Sohi confirmed that the Panj Pyaras had issued a circular in favour of Khalsa against whom “misleading propaganda on social media was being spread by some Sikh institutions that harm the Panthic unity”.“They cautioned the sangat against spreading misleading information that could lead to fissures in the Panth,” he said. The controversy arose when Dhuma, who performed prayers for a Navi Mumbai event, was seen in a photograph garlanding a stone being projected as a ‘Shiv ling’ and broke a coconut.A spokesperson of the taksal said, “This was a traditional ritual of Maharashtra, which should be observed in the same spiritual sense and never be given a political colour.”“The local government and Sikh sangat in Maharashtra had invited Khalsa to perform an ardas before the commencement of the programme in Navi Mumbai,” he added.Proximity to BJPEarlier, Dhuma’s active participation in a BJP government event in Maharashtra to observe the martyrdom of Guru Tegh Bahadur had triggered a debate in political circles.Khalsa, who had distanced himself from the Sukhbir Badal-led SAD and the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) due to a conflict over the removal of Takht Jathedars, has maintained a close proximity with the BJP.
