Watch| Plaque around his neck, ex- Punjab CM Sukhbir Badal serves punishment at Golden Temple gate on a wheelchair

With a plaque around his neck and spear in his hand former Punjab Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal was seen sitting on a wheelchair by the gate of Golden Temple in Amritsar on December 3. 

The former Shiromani Akali Dal chief is serving a religious punishment given to him by Akal Takht, the highest temporal body of Sikhs in a sacrilege case. The Sikh clergy at the Akal Takht pronounced the punishment in the wake of “mistakes” committed by the SAD and its government in Punjab from 2007 to 2017.

The punishment includes a directive to perform as a ‘sewadar’ and clean utensils and shoes at the Golden Temple. Senior Akali Dal leader Bikram Singh Majithia, brother-in-law of Badal, too began his sentence by washing utensils.

The SAD leaders were asked to wear small boards around their necks acknowledging their “misdeeds”, and perform the service of ‘sewadar’ at Takht Kesgarh Sahib, Takht Damdama Sahib, Darbar Sahib at Muktsar and Fatehgarh Sahib for two days each.

Badal came in a wheelchair because of a fractured leg. 

Sukhbir Badal was declared ‘tankhaiya’

The religious punishment comes three months after Sukhbir Badal was declared ‘tankhaiya’ (guilty of religious misconduct) by the Akal Takht.

Jathedar of the highest temporal seat of the Sikhs, Giani Raghbir Singh, pronounced the order from the ‘faseel’ (podium).

The Sikh clergy at the Akal Takht pronounced the punishment in the wake of ‘mistakes’ committed by the SAD and its government in Punjab.

The punishment follows Sukhbir Badal’s confession of four mistakes. He admitted that he pardoned Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh in a 2007 blasphemy case during the SAD government in Punjab.

Sukhbir’s father  and former chief minister of Punjab, late Parkash Singh Badal, has also been stripped of the Fakhr-e-Qaum (pride of the Sikh community) honour that was bestowed on him in 2011 for services to the community.

Five-time Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal passed away in April last year.