Rajasthan Sikh leader Tejinder Pal Timma booked over ‘anti-national’ Facebook post when Amritpal Singh took oath as MP

Timma has been booked under sections 152 (acts endangering the sovereignty, unity, and integrity of India) and 197 (1)(C) (imputations, assertions prejudicial to national integration) of the new criminal law Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), which replaced the colonial-era Indian Penal Code (IPC). Similar offences pertaining to sedition were covered under IPC Section 124 A.

Timma alleged that the FIR against him was based on the complaint of his rival, Lakhwinder Singh, who has been excommunicated from Akal Takht. He also claimed that the civil and police administration was pained by his activism focused on Sikh rights in Rajasthan.

Supporters of Waris Punjab De Chief Amritpal Singh celebrate in Ludhiana, after he took oath as an MP. (PTI)

Lakhvinder, a resident of Gulab Bagh, filed a complaint alleging that Timma posted a video on social media while sitting in his office at the Gurdwara Baba Deep Singh on the afternoon of July 5.

In the purported video posted on Facebook on the day Amritpal took oath, Timma said, “BJP leaders welcomed the slogan of Hindu Rashtra from an MP while taking oath with thumping tables in Parliament House. However, speaker OM Birla imposed restrictions on raising any slogan while taking oath just one day ahead of Amritpal Singh taking oath as he would have raised pro-Khalistan slogan in the parliament.”

Detained under the National Security Act (NSA) in an Assam jail, Amritpal was taken to Delhi for oath-taking. He won Lok Sabha elections 2024 from Khadoor Sahib in Punjab as an Independent candidate.

The FIR, however, also mentioned the episodes of Timma’s arguments with civil and police administration officials in the past. “The accused, Tejinder Pal Singh Timma, also used threatening language to insult the collector at the collector’s office in Sriganganagar. Prior to this, he had also issued threats and insults while standing in front of the superintendent of police’s office, claiming that anyone who intervened would face dire consequences. Earlier, he had used threatening language in front of the collector, boasting that they were the ones who assassinated Indira (Gandhi) in Delhi.”

“If the accused continues to demand Khalistan, it could incite public outrage, potentially leading to any untoward incident. The accused, Tejinderpal Singh Timma, has connections with individuals who demand Khalistan, and he has been sharing his photos and videos with them. Furthermore, he displays Khalistan flags at various gatherings and events, promoting them within the country…” the FIR added.

Takht Damdama Sahib Jathedar Giani Harpreet Singh reacted sharply to the registration of the case and said the new criminal laws were being used to suppress minorities. Takht Damdama Sahib, in Punjab’s Bathinda, is one of the five seats of Sikhism’s temporal authorities.

He wrote on Facebook, “There was hunch from the beginning that the new laws might be used to suppress minorities. The hunch was proven true when the Ganganagar police registered a case of treason against Tajinderpal Singh Timma under the new laws based on a complaint filed by an anti-Panthic individual. It appears that the first case under these new laws in the entire country has been registered against a Sikh.”

Meanwhile, Akali Dal president Sukhbir Singh Badal said he was shocked by the FIR. “Jathedar Timma had categorically stated that he is opposed to any act of communal hatred and violence… There is not a single word in Jathedar Timma’s utterance which is against the unity and integrity of the country in anyway,” said Badal.

Who is Tejinder Pal Singh Timma?

Timma is a former leader of the All India Sikhs Student Federation. He was arrested from Golden Temple during Operation Blue Star in 1984 and remained in Jodhpur jail under the NSA. Since 2007, he has been the Sri Ganga Nagar Chamber of Industry secretary. Additionally, he serves as the chairman of the Rajasthan Dharam Parchar Committee, a wing of the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC). He is also the convener of the Sikh Advisory Committee Rajasthan and organised a congregation of Amritpal at Sri Ganganagar. Timma was honoured for his service during the Covid-19 pandemic.

“We fund girls for higher education of all religions into crores every year. We do social work, and respective governments have honoured us many times for our contribution to society’s welfare. I have been made a target because I oppose the BJP and RSS infiltration into Sikh affairs. The complainant is a blue-eyed boy of BJP. I have opposed the BJP in Rajasthan assembly elections as well as Parliament elections,” said Timma in reaction to the FIR.

“Recently, I had arguments with the administration over a series of episodes where Sikh rights were suppressed. I objected as Sikhs were not allowed inside polling stations with religious symbols, such as Kirpan, on voting day for Parliament elections. Similarly, I objected to the incident of stopping a Sikh child from appearing in an examination while wearing Sikh symbols protected by laws. Both the BJP and the administration were pained with me, and it is the reason that the case has been registered,” added Timma.