Delhi SGPC poll underway, AAP backed party in fray

About 3.75 lakh Sikh voters are voting today to elect new members of the Delhi Sikh Gurudwara Management Committee (DSGPC).

The DSGPC manages nine places of worship, 18 schools and six colleges in Delhi and is considered a powerful Sikh body in the national capital.

A keen contest is expected between Shiromani Akali Dal Delhi (SADD) and Shiromani Akali Dal Badal (SADB) in the election. SADD president Paramjit Singh Sarna and SADB chief Manjinder Singh Sirsa are in direct contest at West Punjabi Bagh seat.

Manjinder Singh Sirsa is the general secretary of the outgoing management committee.

DELHI SGPC: THINGS TO KNOW

The DSGPC represents roughly eight lakh Sikhs living in New Delhi. The committee is headquartered at Gurudwara Rakab Ganj Sahib in New Delhi.

The DSGPC manages nine historical Gurudwaras in Delhi including those at Rakab Ganj Sahib, Bangla Sahib and Sis Ganj Sahib. The DSGPC has an annual budget of over Rs 100 crore to manage the institutions including colleges and schools.

The elections are being held to elect 46 of the 51 committee members. The rest five are nominated by different bodies.

One member is nominated by the Sikh Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee- the



umbrella body. Two others are co-opted and the rest two are nominated by Singh Sabhas of Delhi.

The elections are conducted and managed by the Directorate of Gurudwara Elections, which functions under the direction of the Delhi government as the provisions of the Delhi Sikh Gurudwara Act, 1971.

The elected members remain in their office for four years before fresh polls are held.

Only those Sikhs, who have not cut their hair and follow the religious code of conduct in disciplined manner including observance to the five tenets, are eligible to vote in the DSGPC election.

Till now, the elections were bipolar with SADD and SADB engaging in direct fight. But, this time the AAP supported Panthic Sewa Dal (PSD) is also in the fray and is expected to have a bearing on the election. The PSD was formed by AAP MLA Avtar Singh last year.

The candidate contesting the DSGPC election must have completed 25 years of age, be an amritdhari (one who does not cut hair) Sikh, not take alcoholic drinks and be able to read and write Gurumukhi script.

A total of 335 candidates including 184 independents are standing in the DSGPC election. About 560 polling booths have been created for casting votes.