Religion:Jathedar
A Jathedar (Punjabi: ਜਥੇਦਾਰ) is a leader of a Jatha (a group, a community or a nation). Among the Sikhs, a Jathedar is an ordained leader of the clergy and leads a Takht, a sacred and authoritative seat.
Sikh clergy consists of five Jathedars, one each from five takhts or sacred seats. The Jathedar of Akal Takht makes all the important decisions after consultations with the Jathedars of the other four Takhts. The highest seat of the Sikh community is called Akal Takht.
History
During the 18th century, Jathedars of Takhts were appointed by the Sarbat Khalsa, a biannual deliberative assembly of Sikhs held at Amritsar in Panjab.
From 1921, Jathedars of Takhts have been appointed by Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), an elected body of the Sikhs controlled by Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), a political party in the state of Punjab and an ally of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
In November 2015, the Sikhs appointed four interim Jathedars through the traditional Sarbat Khalsa at Chabba village on the outskirts of Amritsar, Panjab. Some 100,000 [1] to 500,000 Sikhs attended the event from around the world. A few Sikh organizations did not attend and refused to recognize the resolutions of the event. The congregation of Sarbat Khalsa 2015 dismissed the SGPC Jathedars and appointed interim Jathedars for Akal Takht, Damdama Sahib and Anandpur Sahib.
Jathedars of Akal Takht
- Bhai Gurdas (1618–1636)
- Mani Singh (1721–1734)
- Darbara Singh (1722–1734)
- Kapur Singh Virk (1737–1753)
- Jassa Singh Ahluwalia (1753–1783)
- Phula Singh (1800–1823)
- Hanuman Singh (1823–1845)
- Prahlad Singh (1845–)
- Arur Singh Naushera (1906–1921)
- Teja Singh Bhuchar (1920–1921)
- Teja Singh Akarpuri
(1921–1923) & (1926–1930) - Udham Singh Nagoke
(1923–1924) & (1926) - Acchar Singh
(1924–1926) & (1955–1962) - Didar Singh (1925)
- Jawaher Singh Mattu Bhaike (1926)
- Gurmukh Singh Musafir (1931–1934)
- Wasakha Singh Dadehar (1934)
- Mohan Singh Nagoke (1935–1952)
- Partap Singh (1952–1954)
- Mohan Singh Tur
- Sadhu Singh Bhaura (1964–1980)
- Gurdial Singh Ajnoha (1980–1983)
- Kirpal Singh (1983–1986)
- Jasbir Singh Rode (1988–1989)
- Darshan Singh (1989–1990)
- Manjit Singh (1994–1997)
- Ranjit Singh (1997–1999)
- Puran Singh (1999–2000)
- Joginder Singh Vadanti (2000–2008)
- Gurbachan Singh (2008–2018)
Acting Jathedars of Akal Takht
- Partap Singh (1938–1948)
- Kirpal Singh (1963–1965)
- Gurdev Singh Kaunke (1986–1993)
- Gurbachan Singh Manochahal (1986–1987)
- Darshan Singh (1986–1988)
- Dhian Singh Mand (2015–Incumbent)
- Harpreet Singh (2018–Incumbent)
- Jagtar Singh Hawara (2015–Incumbent)
Jathedars of Budha Dal
- Baba Binod Singh
- Baba Darbara Singh
- Nawab Kapur Singh
- Sardar Jassa Singh Ahluwalia
- Baba Naina Singh
- Akali Phula Singh
- Akali Hanuman Singh
- Akali Prahlad Singh
- Baba Giana Singh
- Baba Teja Singh
- Akali Sahib Singh Kaladhari
- Akali Chet Singh
- Baba Santa Singh
- Baba Surjeet Singh
- Baba Prem Singh
- Baba Maan Singh (Disputed)
References
External links
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