Indian politician, 62, spotted with board around neck as part of religious punishment
Sukhbir Singh Badal directed to wash utensils and scrub bathroom floors by Sikh clergy
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Your support makes all the difference.An Indian politician from the western state of Punjab was seen wearing a plaque around his neck and holding a spear as a part of a punishment for alleged religious sacrilege.
Former deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal, who also served as the chief of the Shiromani Akali Dal party, began serving his punishment on Tuesday by wearing the plaque while in a wheelchair at the entrance of the revered Golden Temple in Amritsar.
The 62-year-old was punished by the Akal Takht – the highest temporal body of Sikhs – for allegedly favouring convicted self-styled 'godman' Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh in the 2007 sacrilege of Guru Granth Sahib – the holy religious scripture of Sikhism.
Mr Badal and other members of this party who had then served as cabinet members have been directed to scrub bathrooms, wash dishes and serve food to people. He will sit outside the Golden Temple for two days wearing the guard's dress and the plaque on his neck with a note of his confession of sins, according to reports.
He was initially asked to stand outside the door but due to his fractured leg, he has been allowed to serve his punishment in a wheelchair.
Mr Badal was declared tankhaiya or guilty of religious misconduct by the clergy during the verdict on 30 August for making decisions that allegedly hurt the Sikh community when his party was in power between 2007 and 2017 in Punjab.
The former minister admitted the mistakes, including securing a pardon for Ram Rahim in a 2007 blasphemy case and failing to punish those involved in the alleged sacrilege of Guru Granth Sahib in 2015.
The clergy also announced to revoke the Fakhr-e-Qaum (Pride of the Sikh Community) title conferred to Mr Badal's father, Parkash Singh Badal, who also served as the former chief minister of Punjab.
The Sikh clergy said the Akali party leadership had lost its moral foundation and asked the party to elect to office bearers within six months. Mr Badal resigned as the party leader in November but the party has refused to accept his resignation.
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