Dera hardens stance, Agnivesh upset

Hurt by the curt response, Swami Agnivesh said the Dera’s attitude was unfortunate and would not help resolve the crisis. “Tomorrow is the last day, after which we will apprise the Prime Minister, UPA chairperson and the NDA of the situation. Our doors are still open and we’ll give the Dera a long rope,” he said.

Thursday’s peace formula appeared to resolve the fortnight-old standoff between the Dera and the Akal Takht, but on Friday it appeared that the Dera was pulling out of the peace process. The Dera, which said it regretted the act of “blasphemy” has repeatedly said it was ready to discuss the issue. However, of late it has been saying that the mediations were “not fair”. “Swami Agnivesh turned a deaf ear to all our submissions and was wide open to everything from the other side. That’s not fair,” Aditiya said, adding that they had full faith in the judiciary.

On the issue of apology, he said, “We are reviewing the situation every six hours. We are exploring all options.”

Swami Agnivesh, who was trying to orchestrate a peace sitting in New Delhi, said now there was little point in it with the Dera moving the Supreme Court.

“We are keeping our telephone lines free but unfortunately there is no call coming from the Dera,” Agnivesh told The Indian Express. He said all that was needed was a single line of apology to the Sikh community from Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh. Asked if that would be enough to satisfy Amritsar, the seat of Akal Takht, Agnivesh said, “Yes. It will be over the moment he sends a maafinama (letter of apology). They will withdraw their resolutions.”

“The stubborn silence of the Dera is baffling,” Agnivesh said, adding that Sacha Sauda functionaries, including Arora, were not coming on the line any more. “They are not taking our calls,” he confessed. The Arya Samaj leader expressed his readiness to visit Sirsa again if needed. He said the latest Dera stance had surprised him and other members of the peace team. “We had impressed upon the Dera chief during our Sirsa visit that he should seize this opportunity to make peace with Sikh organisations,” he said. “It would enhance your stature we had told him. The sect chief appeared quite receptive to our suggestions,” he added.

Taken aback by a Sacha Sauda petition in the Supreme Court seeking protection of its deras, Agnivesh said, “It is both surprising and painful after Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal had assured full protection to all citizens and SGPC Avtar Singh Makkar had clarified his position on the issue of closure of Deras.”

Agnivesh felt “certain forces” were out to foil the peace bid by stalling the apology. Sources said the Dera chief, having seen the anxiety of his opponents to extract an apology to save their face, had naturally changed his strategy.

As the State Government said it would ensure that the law was not violated and Deras were not closed forcibly, the Dera Sacha Sauda today again criticised the State Government for its “role” in the entire episode. With the May 27 Akal Takht deadline fast approaching, the State Government is unwilling to leave things till the last moment.