The News Minute | December 7, 2014 | 10:01 am IST
That the Guru Granth Sahib, the holy book of Sikhs, is reportedly being published in China, has triggered a row of sorts in India.
According to a The New Indian Express report, the book is being published in China, and has also been made available online, following which the Sikh clergy has asked members of the community to not buy the books in any form.
Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) is the only body authorised to print and publish Guru Granth Sahib in Gurmukhi script. The SGPC secretary Manjit Singh has filed a complaint against US-based website sikhlink.com for hurting the religious sentiments of Sikhs by selling holy books of the Sikh, states the report.
The Akal Takht, the highest temporal seat of the Sikh religion, is said to have received emails from devotees based out of Canada and the US informing them about the books. The devotees were reportedly informed by the website that 'the Guru Granth Sahib would be delivered to them from China, as it was being published there'. As details remain unclear, proper investigation needs to be conducted in order to confirm 'who is publishing, and who is selling' the books, according to the SGPC.
( Screengrab of sikhlink.com )
The Akal Takht has termed it an act of 'sacrilege', and the SGPC also plans to discuss the issue with the the Chinese envoy. The Akal Takht, however, admitted that it had not seen the China-made copies of the book.