Amritsar, July 5: Devotees visiting the Golden Temple under the Punjab government’s Mukhyamantri Teerth Yatra Yojana were asked to remove identity cards bearing Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann’s photograph before entering the sanctum sanctorum, an official of the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) said.
According to the SGPC, members of its Task Force requested pilgrims on Saturday to remove the ID cards while they were in the marbled parikrama of the Golden Temple, stating that no form of publicity is permitted within the gurdwara premises.
An SGPC official said the identity cards had no relevance inside the shrine and were therefore not allowed. A video showing Task Force personnel asking devotees to remove the cards later surfaced on social media.
The Mukhyamantri Teerth Yatra Yojana provides free pilgrimage to various religious places for Punjab residents aged 50 years and above.
The development comes amid an ongoing controversy involving Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann. Last month, the Akal Takht, the highest temporal seat of the Sikhs, declared Mann ‘Guru Dokhi’ (anti-Guru) and ‘Khalsa Panth Virodhi’ (anti-Khalsa Panth) over an allegedly objectionable video.
Mann has denied appearing in the video, claiming the individual seen in the footage was wearing a mask resembling his face.
The controversy began after Akal Takht summoned the Chief Minister earlier this year over his alleged remarks on ‘Guru ki Golak’ (gurdwara donation box) and the purported video. On June 15, the Sikh clergy issued an edict against Mann after stating that two forensic laboratories had found the video to be authentic.
