The outrage over police boots at Bangla Sahib must not hide the power that governments already hold over Sikh institutions. They hold powers over elections and appointments that determine who runs important gurdwaras and how long managers remain in office. We need to end that dependence and recover accountable Sikh self-management under Shabad Guru Granth Sahib Ji. [3, 7, 8, 14]
Bangla Sahib is a very important gurdwara to me. When I was in Delhi on business, staying in hotels in Connaught Place, I spent many evenings there after work. My concern for it goes beyond the conduct of police on one day.
On 10 October 2026, people taking part in the Cockroach Janta Party’s protest sought shelter there. Allegations followed that police entered wearing shoes and without covering their heads. Police said the footage showed a passage before the shoe-removal point. The Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (DSGMC) accused protesters of political activity inside the premises and filed a complaint; an FIR followed. An independent inquiry must establish what happened and who bears responsibility. [1, 12]
But how can we be so concerned about who walks into a gurdwara and give so little attention to who holds power over it?
The Roman line is only a reading aid, not the translation. The English sentence gives the plain meaning.
Guru Nanak Sahib Ji gives us the starting point for understanding the gathering:
ਸਤਸੰਗਤਿ ਕੈਸੀ ਜਾਣੀਐ ॥
ਜਿਥੈ ਏਕੋ ਨਾਮੁ ਵਖਾਣੀਐ ॥
Simple reading: satsangat kaisee jaaneeai.
jithai eko naam vakhaaneeai.
Plain meaning: How is the true congregation recognised? Where the Name of the One alone is praised.
Reference: Siri Raag, Mahalla 1, Ghar 3, Guru Nanak Sahib Ji, Panna 72, stanza 5. Continuous two-line excerpt; the complete Shabad spans Pannas 71–73, with Rahao on Panna 71. [2]
The Rahao expresses love and an offering of oneself to the One. The Shabad speaks of understanding received through the Guru, the removal of pride and the grace that brings people into union. Managing a gurdwara should serve that relationship. Holding office gives no one ownership of the Guru’s house. [2]
Fifteen years without a fresh vote
The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) manages many historic gurdwaras. Its last general election was in 2011. Sikh voters have gone fifteen years without a fresh vote to choose their representatives, while existing members continue to hold office. The 1925 Act allows them to remain until a new Board is constituted, even after the five-year term. [8, 9]
The Union Home Ministry handles the Sikh Gurdwaras Act 1925 and SGPC matters through Internal Security-I. Its own work list puts them under “Punjab related security matters” and assigns the division responsibility for appointing Chief Commissioners for Gurdwara Elections. The law gives the Centre power over election dates; the Chief Commissioner sets the polling timetable, subject to court directions. Sikh voters depend on that machinery before they can choose a new SGPC. [7, 8]
Yet the executive of this SGPC appoints and removes Jathedars. In March 2025, it announced the removal of the Jathedar of Sri Akal Takht Sahib and appointments affecting all three Takhts in Panjab. Sikh voters must wait on government election machinery to replace the body that chooses the Jathedars. [8–10]
Bangla Sahib faces its own version of this dependence. The DSGMC’s elections are run by the Delhi Government’s Directorate of Gurdwara Elections. Its last general election was in August 2021. In February 2026, the High Court ordered elections by 30 September; in July, the authorities sought six more months. Sikh voters’ opportunity to choose new management has become caught in extensions and court proceedings. [3–5]
Delhi Police answer through the Lieutenant Governor and the Union Home Ministry. The government’s dealings with the gurdwara management over the protest must be disclosed. The inquiry should examine whether powers over the DSGMC election timetable were used to exert pressure. That link remains unproved. It must also examine the reported staff-member account that management refused police requests to send protesters out. [1, 3–6]
At Takht Sri Hazur Sahib, Maharashtra’s government has the power to nominate the board president. At Takht Sri Patna Sahib, the District Judge nominates three committee members. Haryana’s committee began with government nominees in 2014 and held its first general election only in January 2025. These powers and delays concern Sikh religious management. An inquiry into police boots will not remove them. [14]
Our reformers fought to recover Sikh control of the gurdwaras. A century later, we still depend on government before Sikh voters can elect a new SGPC. That dependence must end.
A Sikh name is not enough
Sikh office-holders must answer for their part in this. Leaders who put their positions, wealth or party above the sangat betray the inheritance of the Gurdwara Reform Movement. Sikh names in high office are no substitute for Sikh accountability.
Nor can concern for the gurdwara change with party allegiance. After police action at Sultanpur Lodhi’s Gurdwara Sri Akal Bunga Sahib in November 2023, an SGPC inquiry held Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann responsible and alleged unnecessary firing and entry in shoes during an Akhand Paath, a continuous reading of Gurbani. The Jathedar of Sri Akal Takht Sahib held the Chief Minister guilty of religious misconduct. Police said Nihangs fired first; home guard Jaspal Singh died. [11]
Bhagwant Mann condemned the “BJP’s police” after Bangla Sahib. He must answer for police conduct under his own government with the same seriousness. Neither government should escape scrutiny because its opponent is being questioned. [11, 12]
I have seen people and groups fighting, literally, over committees in British gurdwaras. The police were called and came in wearing boots. Having Sikhs on every committee seat does not, by itself, give us management faithful to the Guru.
Freedom from government control must not give a family or faction freedom to possess the institution. Managers must open the accounts, explain decisions and submit to regular elections. People must be able to raise concerns without being treated as enemies. Sikh self-management must remain subject to ordinary civil and criminal accountability and protect people seeking help.
What we must demand
The immediate demand is SGPC elections now, with legal obstacles addressed openly. Delhi’s authorities must publish and fulfil a firm, lawful election timetable and explain the delays. We need an orderly, peaceful transition to accountable Sikh religious self-management, with a credible voice for Sikhs outside India wherever decisions claim authority over us all.
But we must be clear about what we are seeking control for. The Guru’s word is recited, but too little is explained, understood and lived. Too few are helping our children, or the parents who were never properly taught. A gurdwara should provide patient help with Gurbani and give families somewhere to turn when they want to learn. [2]
I want those who already come with love to deepen their relationship with the Guru. Learning, prayer and dependence on the One belong together. We should help families open Gurbani now, while challenging those who refuse to answer for the institutions they manage.
The decisions that led to 1984, and the killings and disappearances that followed, still require an honest accounting. Human Rights Watch and Ensaaf documented police abductions, unlawful killings, secret cremations and the obstacles families faced in seeking justice. [13]
People of my age were denied their lives and all that brings: children, family life, time with their parents and the chance to grow old. Their families were left to carry the loss. Remembering that loss should make us determined to act intelligently and peacefully.
I pray that we do not see any more deaths or lives destroyed. Our concern must be the people who will live with the consequences of our decisions, not how we want to be remembered.
We should all demand elections and accountable management, and begin helping children and parents understand Gurbani. Otherwise, we will keep protesting about what happens at the gurdwara door while leaving the powers over the Guru’s house untouched.
Related work
Amended by Empire, Province and Parliament. Never by the Panth.
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The New Mahants Hold the Gate
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SGPC Elections and the Future of Sikh Self-Management
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Sources
Source record to 14 October 2026, combining retained checks with focused checks for this revision. The Bangla Sahib account relies on the reporting below; the full video, FIR and memorandum were not independently examined. The Delhi chronology distinguishes court records from a reported election forecast.
[1] Aditi Tandon, “Delhi Police to take legal action over ‘malicious’ video showing cops wearing shoes inside Gurdwara Bangla Sahib”, The Tribune, 10 October 2026:
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Sakshi Chand and Pragynesh, “FIR lodged over alleged AAP protest inside Gurdwara Bangla Sahib”, The Indian Express, 12 October 2026:
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Neeraj Bali, “AAP MLAs move Akal Takht over Bangla Sahib police action, seek accountability”, UNI, 12 October 2026:
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Saurabh Sharma, Sarita Chaganti Singh and Sakshi Dayal, “India detains thousands, locks down Delhi to foil election chief protest”, Reuters, 10 October 2026, updated 11 October:
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The Indian Express report also attributes to a staff member the account that management refused police requests to send protesters out.
[2] Shabad Guru Granth Sahib Ji, SriGranth, Panna 72:
SriGranth, Panna 72
English meaning follows Professor Sahib Singh Ji’s Darpan, complete unit across Pannas 71–73:
Darpan, Panna 71
Darpan, Panna 72
Darpan, Panna 73
For the brief Hukam gloss, see Japji Sahib, Pauri 2, Panna 1, read with Darpan.
[3] Government of NCT of Delhi, Directorate of Gurdwara Elections:
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Delhi Sikh Gurdwaras Act 1971, section 5, reproduced by eCourtsIndia. The four-year term starts at the committee’s first meeting, rather than on polling day:
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[4] Delhi High Court, S. Gurmeet Singh Shunty v Directorate of Gurdwara Elections, W.P.(C) 887/2025 and connected matters: order of 24 February 2026, especially paragraphs 2 and 11:
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Order of 13 July 2026, paragraphs 1 and 7:
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Gurvinder Singh v Neeraj Semwal, 24 August 2026, paragraphs 5–7:
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The latter records submissions about a 12 August order and affidavit; those underlying documents were not independently inspected.
[5] “Sharp Decline in Delhi Sikh Voters Alarming, Says Former DSGMC Member Inder Mohan Singh”, Yes Punjab, 26 September 2026:
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The prospective polling period is attributed to Singh, not presented as a final notification.
[6] Constitution of India, Article 239AA(3)(a); Government of NCT of Delhi v Union of India, Supreme Court, 29 November 2023, paragraphs 17–18. Delhi Police Act 1978, section 4. Ministry of Home Affairs, Union Territories Division, statement of responsibilities, including Delhi Police.
India Code, Delhi Police Act:
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MHA, Union Territories responsibilities on its AGMUT Cadre Management page:
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[7] Ministry of Home Affairs, Allocation of Work of Internal Security-I Division, items 19 and 21:
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[8] Sikh Gurdwaras Act 1925, sections 47, 47A and 51, Ministry of Home Affairs-hosted consolidation, printed pages 44–46:
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Ministry of Home Affairs, Lok Sabha Unstarred Question 4143, answered 19 August 2025, on the Chief Commissioner’s election timetable under the 1959 Rules:
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The answer reports a court stay then; it does not establish its status in October 2026.
[9] Charanjit Singh Teja, “Sikh outfits urge Amit Shah to expedite SGPC elections”, The Tribune, 10 October 2026:
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[10] SGPC, “SGPC announces budget session on March 28; key decisions taken on Jathedar appointments”, 7 March 2025:
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[11] SGPC, “SGPC probe panel holds Chief Minister responsible for incident of firing at Gurdwara Sahib of Sultanpur Lodhi”, 8 January 2024:
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Deepkamal Kaur, “Home guard killed, 14 cops injured as Nihangs open fire in Kapurthala”, The Tribune, 24 November 2023:
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Kamaldeep Singh Brar, “Akal Takht Jathedar holds CM Bhagwant Mann guilty of ‘religious misconduct’ over Kapurthala gurdwara clash”, The Indian Express, 21 January 2024, updated 22 January:
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Panel findings, the police account and the Takht decision are attributed; none is presented as a court judgement.
[12] “Punjab CM Mann slams Delhi Police over shoes at Gurdwara Bangla Sahib, alleges ‘Taliban-like’ attitude”, The New Indian Express, 11 October 2026, with PTI inputs, reproducing Bhagwant Mann’s statement and the police response:
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[13] Human Rights Watch and Ensaaf, Protecting the Killers: A Policy of Impunity in Punjab, India, 17 October 2007, Summary and “Failure of Justice”:
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[14] Nanded Sikh Gurudwara Sachkhand Shri Hazur Apchalnagar Sahib (Amendment) Act 2015, Maharashtra Act XVI of 2015, section 3, substituting section 11(1), Gazette reproduction:
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The Sikh Collective v State of Bihar, Patna High Court, 16 February 2024, paragraphs 1 and 4–5:
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Parveen Arora, “Explainer: Only months after electing chief, Sikh gurdwara panel battles infighting”, The Tribune, 23 July 2025, section on establishment and the first election:
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The 2024 Nanded proposal is not treated as the enacted board composition.
Errors will be corrected publicly with a dated note.
Strong disagreement is welcome. Contempt is not.
Bhul chuk maaf karni Ji.
Gurjit Singh Sandhu
PanthSeva
London