Amritsar, Oct 16 (PTI) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLAs and leaders on Friday appeared at the Sri Akal Takht Sahib Secretariat here and offered explanations in the wake of a controversy which erupted over a statement made to the media by ruling party legislator Manwinder Singh Giaspura.
It has been alleged that on October 12, Giaspura, who represents Payal in Ludhiana district, made false statements to the media outside the Secretariat of Akal Takht Sahib in the Darbar Sahib complex, claiming caste-based discrimination.
A delegation of Punjab AAP MLAs on Monday submitted a memorandum to the Akal Takht Secretariat, seeking action against Union Home Minister Amit Shah over the alleged entry of Delhi Police into Gurdwara Bangla Sahib in the national capital during a protest.
Calling it a grave violation of the sanctity of Sikh religious institutions, the MLAs urged the Akal Takht Jathedar to summon Shah and ensure accountability.
AAP MLA Giaspura, who accompanied the other legislators, was denied entry into the Secretariat on the directions of Jathedar Akal Takht Giani Kuldip Singh Gargajj over his alleged objectionable remarks against Sikh personalities and institutions in the past.
Addressing the media on Monday, Jaskaran Singh, media adviser at the Akal Takht Secretariat, had condemned and rejected Giaspura’s statement to the media alleging that he had been denied entry on the grounds of caste-based discrimination.
He clarified that Giaspura was stopped because of his alleged past “derogatory, highly objectionable and threatening” remarks against the respected Jathedar Akal Takht and Sikh institutions.
A statement issued here on Friday by the Akal Takht Secretariat said that in view of the matter, some MLAs and AAP leaders appeared at the Secretariat of Akal Takht Sahib in compliance with the directions issued by the Jathedar Akal Takht.
The AAP legislators admitted their mistake, acknowledging that despite the Jathedar’s directions, they had neither contradicted Giaspura’s allegations before the media on October 12 nor clarified that they had not faced any caste-based discrimination and that Giaspura had made inappropriate remarks, the statement said. PTI JMS SUN VSD MNK
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