DSGMC General Secretary and Minister of State in Punjab, Manjinder Singh Sirsa, Lodged a Complaint Against Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal

The DSGMC general secretary and Minister of State in Punjab, Manjinder Singh Sirsa, lodged a complaint against Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal for allegedly hurting Sikh sentiments through his morphed image on the cover page of India Today magazine.

In the controversial image in the Hindi magazine, Kejriwal is wearing a traditional Sikh attire but there is no beard on his face - something which is against the tenets of the religion, according to the complaint. 

Complainant Manjinder Singh Sirsa, who was elected to the Delhi Assembly from Rajouri Garden on an Akali Dal ticket in 2013, gave a complaint to the Parliament Street police.

He demanded that an FIR should be filed under penal provisions dealing with deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings of any class.

Sirsa said in a statement, “Keshas (unshorn hair) are the inseparable part of every practising Sikh. Presenting any person in traditional Sikh dress in a clean-shaven form is a blatant insult to the established Sikh traditions and customs.”

In his complaint, Sirsa has also named the magazine. He said that such images can generate a misconception that the Sikh traditional attire can be worn by clean-shaven people too.

“Such misconception can, in turn, create misleading perception about the Sikh community, which can cause great damage to the established Sikh traditions and customs,” he said.

He warned that if the police failed to take stern action against the accused, the Sikhs all over the world will be compelled to initiate a strong movement against these accused parties.

The complaint seems to carry political motives as Punjab's ruling Akali Dal and the AAP have been gunning for each other in the run-up to next year's assembly polls in that state.

Kejriwal, who frequently campaigns in Punjab, has claimed that his party would get a clear majority in the polls - a claim rubbished by the Akali Dal.

The allegations of hurting religious sentiment against Kejriwal were made on a day when the Chief Minister announced plans of his government to repair houses of 1984 Delhi riot victims and refugees from Punjab settled in the city, a decision apparently taken with an eye on assembly polls in that state.

Link:http://www.tribuneindia.com/news/delhi/kejriwal-hurts-feelings-of-sikhs-says-dsgmc/265048.html