Amritsar March 23:
Expressing his reservation over the SGPC Budget 2011-12 to be presented on March 24, SAD (1920) Vice-President Raghbir Singh Rajasansi today accused the SGPC of resorting to unnecessary expenses and recovering excess funds from gurdwaras in violation of the Gurdwara Act, causing losses to 42 gurdwaras, including the Golden Temple.
Addressing a press conference here today, Rajasansi said he had written letters to the Union Home Minister, the Sikh Gurdwara Judicial Commission, the Gurdwara Election Commission and the SGPC Secretary in this regard. He attributed the revelation to a copy of the supplementary budget sent to SGPC members for a prior information.
He said in the proposed SGPC Budget, the General Board’s budget is Rs 43.83 crore while the total income of the board is Rs 26.18 crore. “To compensate this loss, Rs 9 crore has come from old savings while excess funds to the tune of Rs 8.65 crore are being recovered from gurdwaras coming under Section 85, including the Golden Temple. This despite the fact that as per the Gurdwara Act, only 10 per cent of a gurdwara’s income can go to the General Board,” he claimed.
Similarly, Rajasansi claimed that while the existing SGPC-run educational institutions were running in losses, instead of trying to bring them in profit, it was going to spend another Rs 9 crore on opening new public schools. He claimed that for educational fund, too, an excess burden of Rs 6.5 crore was being put on gurdwaras, which was wrong.
On the other hand, SGPC Secretary Dalmegh Singh denied the charge that the gurdwaras were suffering losses. He said the SGPC was opening new educational institutions following the community’s demand.
Expressing his reservation over the SGPC Budget 2011-12 to be presented on March 24, SAD (1920) Vice-President Raghbir Singh Rajasansi today accused the SGPC of resorting to unnecessary expenses and recovering excess funds from gurdwaras in violation of the Gurdwara Act, causing losses to 42 gurdwaras, including the Golden Temple.
Addressing a press conference here today, Rajasansi said he had written letters to the Union Home Minister, the Sikh Gurdwara Judicial Commission, the Gurdwara Election Commission and the SGPC Secretary in this regard. He attributed the revelation to a copy of the supplementary budget sent to SGPC members for a prior information.
He said in the proposed SGPC Budget, the General Board’s budget is Rs 43.83 crore while the total income of the board is Rs 26.18 crore. “To compensate this loss, Rs 9 crore has come from old savings while excess funds to the tune of Rs 8.65 crore are being recovered from gurdwaras coming under Section 85, including the Golden Temple. This despite the fact that as per the Gurdwara Act, only 10 per cent of a gurdwara’s income can go to the General Board,” he claimed.
Similarly, Rajasansi claimed that while the existing SGPC-run educational institutions were running in losses, instead of trying to bring them in profit, it was going to spend another Rs 9 crore on opening new public schools. He claimed that for educational fund, too, an excess burden of Rs 6.5 crore was being put on gurdwaras, which was wrong.
On the other hand, SGPC Secretary Dalmegh Singh denied the charge that the gurdwaras were suffering losses. He said the SGPC was opening new educational institutions following the community’s demand.
