The first meeting of the newly-elected 46 members of the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee for co-option will be held on 9 September 2021, presided over by the Director of the Directorate of Gurdwara Elections. The list of Presidents of Singh Sabhas registered with the DGE is also online. A notification with the schedule of co-option of the 2 members who would represent the Sikh Community of Delhi has been issued. WSN Delhi Desk’s Gurmeet Singh reports.

The Directorate of Gurdwara Elections has fixed 9 September as the date for co-option as per the provisions of the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Act. As per the notification issued on 31 August 2021, the last date for filing nominations is 4 September 2021 with scrutiny on 6 September and withdrawal of nominees on 8 November.

On 9 September 2021 the co-option of the new members. 9 members, which includes 4 head priests of the four Takhts, namely Akal Takht Sahib, Patna Sahib, Hazur Sahib and Keshgarh Sahib, 1 nominee of SGPC, 2 members from the Sikh community and 2 members from the list of presidents of the 273 registered Singh Sabhas of Delhi. The selection of the 2 members from the Sikh community will be through a secret ballot. Every elected member out of the 46 shall have only one vote. In the current scenario, there is likely to be one from the winning side and one from the combined opposition.

Once the co-option is complete the members take the oath of office at a subsequent date and then the formation of the eighth general house of the DSGMC will be officially  completed.  

Though belatedly, the DGE -Directorate of Gurdwara Elections, has published the list of Presidents of the 273 Gurdwara Singh Sabhas, registered with the DGE, on its website. Two members out of these will be chosen by drawing lots and will be co-opted. What is significant is that the directorate’s list is not up to date and there is a mismatch as per the current presidents who are in office. A case in point is that of the President of Gurdwara Sahib in Moti Nagar, New Delhi, where the name of the President, who was officiating 6 years ago has been mentioned.

According to information gathered by WSN, the participating groups do not show much interest, except only if the numbers are at stake and this results in laxity.

Conscientious Sikhs, social media activists and Gurdwara leaders should show rigout and go in for scrutiny of names on a war footing.  The list of Presidents of registered Gurdwara Singh Sabhas is available online on the Directorate of Gurdwara Elections website. 

The  DGE has given only two days for filing objections. The list of Presidents has been uploaded online but there is no communication from the DGE to the Gurdwara Presidents in this regard.  Form C III available online on the DGE website should be filed for objecting a name up to 1500 hrs on 2 September 2021. 

With the Badal Dal team winning 27 seats and the combined opposition numbers being 19, the possibility of turncoats on either side, the results of co-option can easily twist the balance before the constitution of the new house.