Damdami Taksal collaborates in Sikh religio-political domain with BJP that is eyeing Punjab in 2027 Assembly elections

Of Saffron Turbans, BJP and the Sikhs

Jagtar Singh

Chandigarh: 

The Maharashtra government released ads in newspapers earlier regarding function to commemorate 350^th martyrdom anniversary of the ninth Sikh Guru, Guru Tegh Bahadur, in Navi Mumbai. Guru Tegh Bahadur was martyred in Delhi on the orders of Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb. The Guru  opted for this supreme sacrifice for human rights and religious freedom. There should be nothing unusual about a state government inserting such ad in the newspapers. However, it was unusual at one level.

The leaders whose pictures the ad carried included Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, his deputy chief minister Eknath Shinde and others.  What was striking about this ad was that all these leaders donned turbans with saffron being the dominant colour. The Ninth Sikh Guru sacrificed his life for the cause of humanity and human rights. It may be mentioned that earlier, Haryana had commemorated this anniversary in the state at Kurukshetra in which Modi had participated. Amit Shah, Fadnavis and other BJP leaders who participated in the programme on March 1 donned kesari turbans.

March 1, the day when this ad appeared, was also the day when chief minister of Haryana, the state carved out of Punjab in 1966, Nayab Singh Saini, presented his budget in the state Assembly. He also holds the charge of finance. What again was unusual was that donned what has now become his signature saffron turban. His budget speech was interspersed with quotation from Gurbani of Guru Nanak, the founder of the Sikh religion whose message is focussed on universal love and brotherhood.

It is apparent that the BJP is   intensely focused on the Sikhs, the second main minority in India after the Muslims. The Sikhs are also in a majority in their home state of Punjab turning it into a state with its unique religio-political dynamics as this community ruled the region from Satluj river to Khyber despite being the third demographic dimension.  This is the region that has always been located strategically, both before partition of India in 1947 and after.

The issue here is that of so such  importance being given to the Sikhs by the BJP , a party that is perceived to be anti-minority at the national level and whose politics has completely marginalised the Muslims, the biggest minority in this country.

Electoral dynamics is one dimension in case of this emerging relationship with the Sikhs but the BJP has never been among the main political players the politics of this border state and has always played second fiddle to the Akalis who for decades articulated the aspirations and demands of the Sikhs. The party was in alliance with the Shiromani Akali Dal from 1996 when it extended much-needed unconditional support to Atal Behari Vajpayee till 2020 when it broke under the weight of the farmers agitation against three farm laws.

The design of the BJP, and its parent body Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh, in context of the Sikhs as a minority,  seems to be multi-dimensional of which electoral aspirations is just one part. The second dimension seems to be strategic and more important. The fractured Sikh polity appears to be helping the second design of the BJP.

Having the support of the second biggest minority  blurs the anti-minority image of the BJP to a large extent. The Sikhs are not just  a second minority, they are also aggressive and dynamic and play important role in various fields in the country. Maharashtra is a case study where regional and religious dimensions  play the all important role in the electoral dynamics and BJP is not the only party playing the Hindutva card. The Sikh community shifting towards the BJP in such a state is an important aspect in constructing the perception. Interestingly, playing  role of a catalyst between the BJP and the Sikhs in Maharashtra is Baba Harnam Singh Dhumma, chief of the Sikh seminary Damdami Taksal, one headed by Sant Kartar Singh and Sant Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale.

One of the five Sikh takhts, the seats of authority, is located in Nanded in Maharashtra and is known as Takht Hazoor Sahib where Guru Gobind Singh, the last and the 10^th Guru, breathed his last.

Interesting, Harnam Singh was hailed for being different from his hard-line predecessors. The criticism of Sant Bhindranwale was nuanced. It is for Baba Harnam Singh to clarify this dimension.

In this context, it needs to be taken into account that the priorities and politics of the Sikhs in other states are different from that of the Sikhs in Punjab. The Sikhs in other states normally have to bargain with whichever party is in power, and rightly so. The Sikh leaders in Delhi and Maharashtra identify themselves with the BJP. Akali stalwart Jathedar Gurcharan Singh Tohra who dictated the Sikh politics for years as head of then all powerful Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee, would always advise the Sikhs outside Punjab to have transactional approach so far as  their interests were concerned. In case of Damdami Taksal chief, however, the issues involved are much deeper in the context of legacy of the institution that he heads. But then the issue under discussion is the framing of the Sikhs in its political and ideological framework and not Harnam Singh Dhumma.

At another level, of course, this emerging role of Damdami Taksal under Dhumma needs to be placed in the BJP’s exercise, especially in context of its overseas outreach. This is yet another important dimension of the BJP design.

The activities of a section of the overseas hard-line Sikhs who stridently advocate the Sikh state of Khalistan continues to be a thorn in India’s foreign policy. India’s relations with Canada are now on recovery path after hitting the bottom with reference to the assassination of Hardeep Singh Nijjer, an activist of the Sikhs for Justice, in Surrey in Canada. Similar problem cropped up when the issue of abortive attempt on the life of Sikhs of Justice leader Gurpatwant Singh Pannun surfaced in USA. In both these cases, the accusing finger was towards Indian agencies. Judicial process is on in both these cases.

Canada and India have transited from that situation towards restoration of normal relations with Mark Carney replacing Justine Trudeau as the prime minister. Ironically, as Carney landed in India, Canadian newspapers put out stories naming Indian officials in Nijjer’s killing for the first time. Apparently, Canada’s political leadership and security agencies are functioning at cross purpose on this specific issue. India has denied reports appearing in Canadian media but then the denials can’t neutralise the impact of these reports.

The activities of the hard-line Sikhs in several countries continue to be cause of concern for India. The policy of the BJP towards the Sikhs has to be placed in this context. The effort is to assuage the Sikhs, despite the fact that those advocating a Sikh state could be in a minority. The involvement of Damdami Taksal by the BJP in this context is understandable. After all, Damdami Taksal under Sant Bhindranwale symbolised the Sikh struggle and Sant Bhindranwale continues to inspire the next generation.

The third dimension is ideological as the BJP and the RSS place India in the Hindu civilisation context. Indian sub-continent has been multi-cultural and multi-lingual but RSS and the BJP contextualise India as one cultural civilisational identity. The Narendra Modi government continues to implement its legacy agenda as evident from abrogation of Article 370 and the like. Punjab is perceived to be the pocket of resistance in the Hindu civilisational agenda march.

The BJP and the RSS too have amended their approach to the Sikhs. The RSS does not contest independent and separate identity of the Sikhs but it is the cultural dimension that is being given more importance. Both Sikhs and Hindus  in this region share Punjabi culture. It is the Punjabi cultural identity that is now being advocated by these bodies rather than claiming Sikhs to be part of the broader Hindu family. The celebrations of Sikh events by the BJP has to be seen in this framework. This would also explain the ad referred above.

Haryana chief minister Saini shares this Punjabi identity and he has been deputed by the party to implement this agenda.

The BJP believes in opting for long race. The forthcoming Assembly election in February 2027 in Punjab might not be the main objective as the BJP is not so far among the main contenders in Punjab. However, its base is widening. It could be the race for 2032.

There seem to be two approaches in the BJP itself. One section advocates alliance with the Akalis while the other is pressing for solo approach. Amit Shah has been giving the signal of going ahead without alliance and if at all there has tb be alliance, it has to be based upon hard bargaining. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is stated to be a little soft in his approach.

Turbaned BJP making impact in the Sikh religio-political domain  in the broader context is all the more important than just the immediate electoral calculations.