Religious storm brews in Punjab as Akal Takht brands CM Mann ‘Guru Dokhi’

A major political and religious controversy has erupted in Punjab after the Akal Takht declared Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann a “Guru Dokhi” (betrayer of the Guru) and “Khalsa Panth Virodi” over allegations linked to a viral video.

In the purported video, a person resembling Mann is seen pouring alcohol over the images of Sikh Gurus. Mann has rejected the allegations, claiming that the person seen in the footage is not him and has accused political opponents of running a campaign to damage his image.

Earlier this year, a complaint was filed against Mann for allegedly making objectionable remarks and disrespecting Sikh religious figures in the footage. When the matter first came before the Akal Takht in January, Mann reportedly denied being the person in the video and claimed that the footage was fake.

Forensic report

According to Sikh clergy, the Akal Takht later sought forensic examination of the video. On June 15, the Sikh body announced that two central Government-recognised forensic laboratories had examined the footage and found it to be genuine and not AI-generated.

Also read: Bhagwant Mann denies viral video, rejects Akal Takht's allegations

The Akal Takht alleged that Mann had misled the Sikh clergy about the authenticity of the video. Following this, the Sikh body declared him a “Guru Doki” and “Khalsa Panth Virodi”.

It also appealed to members of the Sikh community to distance themselves from the Punjab chief minister.

Political reactions

The controversy has intensified with political parties taking opposing positions. The ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has questioned the conclusions drawn from the forensic reports, arguing that while the reports may have ruled out AI manipulation, they did not establish the identity of the person shown in the video.

AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal backed Mann, saying his opponents were attempting to defame him because of his government’s work.

“Opponents who are uncomfortable with Bhagwant Mann’s work are trying to malign him by branding him a liar,” Kejriwal said in a social media post.

Mann’s defence

Responding to the allegations, Mann categorically denied being the person in the video. He argued that the individual seen in the footage did not match his height or physical appearance.

He accused his political rivals of misusing religion for political purposes and said the controversy was aimed at damaging his reputation.

While reiterating his respect for the Akal Takht, Mann said he would continue working for Punjab and focus on issues including water, agriculture, youth welfare and religious matters.

Also read: AAP faces Punjab turmoil year before polls as Akal Takht declares Mann ‘anti-Guru’

He also claimed that vested interests were uncomfortable with his government’s anti-sacrilege legislation and other policy decisions, and were therefore attempting to target him through false propaganda.

Next hearing

In a related development, all Sikh MLAs across party lines and Sikh ministers in the Punjab Cabinet, except Mann, have been summoned to appear before the Akal Takht on June 29 over concerns related to Punjab’s anti-sacrilege law.

The confrontation between the Sikh religious authority, political parties and the Punjab government is now set to intensify ahead of the June 29 appearance.

The key question remains — will the Akal Takht’s action create further political pressure on Bhagwant Mann’s government?

The content above has been transcribed from video using a fine-tuned AI model. To ensure accuracy, quality, and editorial integrity, we employ a Human-In-The-Loop (HITL) process. While AI assists in creating the initial draft, our experienced editorial team carefully reviews, edits, and refines the content before publication. At The Federal, we combine the efficiency of AI with the expertise of human editors to deliver reliable and insightful journalism.