CHANDIGARH: A day after he survived an assassination bid, Shiromani Akali Dal leader Sukhbir Singh Badal performed 'tankhah' duty (religious punishment) as ‘sewadar’ amid tight security cover of Punjab Police and central forces outside Takht Kesgarh Sahib in Rupnagar district of Punjab.
Sukhbir Singh Badal the SAD chief and former Deputy Chief Minister who is in Z plus cover arrived at the Ananadpur Sahib shrine surrounded by security personnel of state police and paramilitary force. Dressed in blue ‘sewadar’ uniform.
Badal sat at the entrance of the gurdwara with a spear in one hand for an hour and then he listened to kirtan along with his wife and Member of parliament from Bathinda, Harsimrat Kaur Badal and son Anantveer Singh Badal after which, the whole family performed the `sewa’ of washing utensils in the gurdwara.
Today the state police had made elaborate security arrangements ahead of Badal’s visit to Takht Kesgarh Sahib. Senior Superintendent of Police of Rupnagar, Gulneet Singh Khurana said foolproof security arrangements have been made.
"Plainclothed policemen have also been deployed and police are keeping an eye on things,’’ he said.
Besides Badal, SAD leaders and workers were present at the gurdwara. Sukhbir is undergoing religious punishment pronounced by the Akal Takht, the temporal body of Sikhs, for “mistakes” committed by the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) Government and his party in Punjab from 2007 to 2017.
Besides the Golden Temple in Amritsar, the Akal Takht has asked Badal to perform the service of ‘sewadar’ at Takht Kesgarh Sahib, Takht Damdama Sahib, and Darbar Sahib in Muktsar and Fatehgarh Sahib for two days each.
Yesterday during his penance at the Golden Temple, Badal had a narrow escape as a former Khalistani terrorist fired at him from a close range but missed as he was overpowered by plainclothed policemen.
Sources said that Sukhbir’s Z plus security cover includes 36 personnel with 10+ CRPF commandos but none of his central security detail was visibly present near him at the time of the attack yesterday, but today he was surrounded by them.
A senior Akali leader, requesting anonymity said that yesterday the Z-plus personnel were asked to maintain distance after some devotees had complained to the Akal Takht Jathedar about Sukhbir undergoing religious punishment under heavy security cover. But today there was massive security deployment and party workers were also present in large numbers at the gurdwara.
