Chandigarh, February 4:(Harbans singh)
In connection with a case of criminal breach of trust and fraud involving the illegal sale of 1 bigha, 6 visbas and 10 visbasis land, located in village Sainimajra (Premgarh) in Sahibzada Ajit Singh Nagar (Mohali), belonging to Gurdwara Sri Amb Sahib Patshahi Satvin, Mohali, the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) President Advocate Harjinder Singh Dhami has taken strict action by suspending the Gurdwara manager, Rajinder Singh, and ordering legal action against him. Advocate Dhami stated that if the involvement of any other individual is found in this matter, departmental as well as legal action will also be initiated against them. For further investigation, a committee comprising SGPC members has been constituted, and the process to cancel the land registry executed by the manager has also been initiated.
Addressing a press conference at the SGPC Sub-Office in Chandigarh today, Advocate Harjinder Singh Dhami clarified that no SGPC officer or Gurdwara manager has the authority to sell any property related to a Gurdwara on their own. He said that if the Sikh institution intends to sell or purchase any land, the process must strictly follow prescribed rules, including approval from the SGPC Executive Committee (EC) and execution through the concerned Gurdwara Property Sub-Committee.
Advocate Dhami informed that a five-member committee has been formed for a detailed departmental inquiry. The committee includes EC member Bibi Harjinder Kaur, Chief Secretary Kulwant Singh Mannan, members Charanjit Singh Kalewal, Surjit Singh Bhittewad, and Paramjit Singh Lakhewal.
He further stated that Gurdwara Sri Amb Sahib manager Rajinder Singh sold the said land in village Sainimajra to four buyers without any official approval, and fraudulent registries were executed in different names on December 2, 2025.
As soon as the matter came to the notice of the SGPC office, an immediate inquiry was conducted. During the preliminary investigation, it was revealed that manager Rajinder Singh had himself prepared a forged letter on the office letterhead to falsely show authorization, which he has admitted in writing. Advocate Dhami disclosed that the manager received four cheques amounting to Rs 1.32 crore from the buyers, which were encashed into his personal bank account. It has also come to light that he may have collected several crores of rupees more, details of which were not provided to the investigation team and are still under probe.
Advocate Dhami categorically stated that no proposal, documentation, or decision regarding the sale of this land was ongoing or approved by the SGPC. He emphasized that no employee or officer involved in misappropriation of Gurdwara assets would be spared. Following the preliminary inquiry, the manager has been suspended and directions have been issued for legal action against him. Strict action will also be taken against anyone else found involved in the case.
He added that orders have been issued to initiate the process for cancellation of the illegal registries of the concerned land. While the manager’s actions have brought disrepute to the institution, they have also caused significant financial loss to the Gurdwara.
Advocate Dhami reiterated that the SGPC follows a well-defined procedure for the purchase or sale of any Gurdwara property. This includes recommendations from the Gurdwara Property Sub-Committee, scrutiny by the Revenue Department, approval from the Executive Committee, and thereafter, sale through open auction under the supervision of a duly constituted sub-committee approved by the SGPC President.
Advocate Dhami further said that throughout his tenure, his consistent intent has been to increase Gurdwara lands and properties, and in line with this objective, several new lands have been purchased. He issued a stern warning to all SGPC officers and employees to perform their duties with complete honesty, stating that any instance of corruption will not be tolerated under any circumstances.
Present on the occasion were EC member Gurpreet Singh Jhabbar, Chief Secretary Kulwant Singh Mannan, member Ranjit Singh Kahlon, Assistant Secretary Lakhbir Singh, Jaskaran Singh, and Ranjit Singh Jalandhar.
