The Akal Takht, the highest temporal seat of the Sikhs, added a new dimension to Punjab politics on Monday by declaring Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann a “Guru dokhi” (anti-Guru) and “Khalsa Panth virodhi” (opposed to the Khalsa Panth) over an alleged sacrilege video. It directed “Nanak Naam Leva Sikhs” to refrain from socialising with him. The controversy centres on a video that surfaced earlier this year, which Mann had claimed was fabricated. However, Acting Akal Takht Jathedar Kuldeep Singh Gargaj said that forensic examinations found no evidence of tampering. Mann has rejected the finding and insisted that he is not the person seen in the video. The Punjab CM has accused Shiromani Akali Dal leader Sukhbir Singh Badal of orchestrating a campaign to malign him.

Religious edicts have often intersected with politics in Punjab. In 2024, Badal himself was declared a “tankhaiya” (religious sinner) after a highly publicised proceeding before the Akal Takht. Yet, the timing of the latest directive is significant. It comes days after AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal projected Mann as the party’s CM face for the next Assembly elections. Sacrilege has assumed political overtones in recent times — the emotionally charged issue contributed to the Akali Dal’s defeat in 2017 and its subsequent decline. The debate has intensified after the enactment of the Jagat Jot Sri Guru Granth Sahib Satkar (Amendment) Act, 2026, which expands the definition of sacrilege and prescribes stringent penalties. At the same time, AAP has renewed its criticism of the Akali Dal’s handling of the 2015 sacrilege cases and the police firing on protesters that resulted in two deaths.

While Mann’s supporters may dismiss it, the directive provides his opponents, especially the Akali Dal, with fresh political ammunition against the government. Attention is now focussed on how the CM will respond. Will he appear before the Akal Takht, particularly after Sikh ministers and legislators were summoned on June 29 over the enactment of the anti-sacrilege law without consultation with Sikh religious institutions? Punjab can ill afford a prolonged political-religious confrontation. The border state faces challenges such as drug abuse, rising gangsterism and economic stress. Governance and development should hold centre stage in Punjab’s politics, rather than controversies that deepen divisions.