Longowal re-appointed SGPC chief third time

Gobind Singh Longowal was on Wednesday re-appointed President, third time in a row, of the cash-rich Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC).

The decision was taken at the annual meeting of the SGPC general house held inside the Golden Temple complex here.

His name was proposed by former SGPC President Jagir Kaur and seconded by Alwinder Pal Singh Pakhoke.

A day earlier, the SGPC members authorised Shiromani Akali Dal president Sukhbir Singh Badal to decide on the appointment of the SGPC President.

Longowal was appointed SGPC President for the first time in November 2017 and again in November last year.

Harjinder Singh Dhami and Rajinder Singh Mehta were re-elected general secretary and senior vice-president, respectively, of the SGPC.

The SGPC, considered a mini-parliament of Sikh religious affairs, has an annual budget of nearly Rs 1,200 crore.

The SGPC, which has control over Sikh religious affairs, manages gurdwaras in Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh, including the holiest of Sikh shrines Harmandir Sahib, popularly known as Golden Temple, in Amritsar.IANS