The Punjab Assembly on Tuesday passed the Sikh Gurdwara (Amendment) Bill, 2023, which aims to ‘Gurbani’ Broadcasting and telecasting is to be made free to all without any tender. Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann introduced this bill in the assembly. At the same time, this bill has been opposed by SGPC chief Harjinder Singh Dhami and leaders of Shiromani Akali Dal, who said that the state government does not have the right to bring such a bill.
Congress did walkout
Earlier, Congress MLAs staged a walkout from the assembly regarding their demands. Party leaders have also said that the state government cannot bring a bill to amend the Sikh Gurdwara Act.
Holy Gurbani should not be commercialized in any way – Bhagwant Mann
According to a Punjab government release issued on Monday, Bhagwant Mann said that the move is aimed at ensuring that holy Gurbani is not commercialized in any way. The Chief Minister said that this Act will be called the Sikh Gurdwara (Amendment) Act, 2023 and it will come into force from the date of its publication in the official gazette. He said that after section 125 in the Sikh Gurdwara Act, 1925, section 125-A will be inserted for free live telecast of Gurbani.
Gurbani will be broadcast free of cost
Bhagwant Mann said that the Act states that it shall be the duty of the Board to provide uninterrupted (without any on-screen advertisements/advertisements/distractions) live feed (audio or audio as well as video) of the teachings of the Gurus Create and promote. The holy Gurbani of Sri Harmandir Sahib is available free of cost to all media houses, outlets, platforms, channels, whoever wants to broadcast it.
Mann expresses surprise at SGPC’s stand
The Chief Minister further said that as a humble and devout Sikh, he is in favor of free-to-air broadcast of Gurbani across the world. Bhagwant Mann wondered how this was an attack on the Panth “as they were just opposing the control of a particular channel on the broadcast of Gurbani, which is totally unfair and unjustified”.
Objective- To spread the message of Gurbani worldwide
He said that the move is not aimed at giving authority to any particular channel of the government or any one person, but it is aimed at spreading the message of Gurbani across the world. The chief minister asserted that the state government was fully competent to amend the act as the apex court had already ruled through a judgment that the act was not an inter-state act. He said that for a long time the affairs of SGPC were dominated by one family, due to which the Sikh Panth has suffered irreparable damage.
People want to hear Gurbani of Sri Harmandir Sahib, hence the step taken
The Chief Minister said that since people wanted to listen to the Gurbani of Sri Harmandir Sahib, they had to subscribe to this channel. According to the release, Bhagwant Mann said the act was “not an attack on the creed, rather it is a humble attempt to ensure free transmission of the holy Gurbani across the world”.