SGPC Foundation Day: how the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee began

The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee, the SGPC, was founded on 15 November 1920 at a gathering at Sri Akal Takht Sahib. It was formed to bring the historic gurdwaras of the Sikhs under the management of the Panth itself, and today it manages Sri Harmandir Sahib and many other gurdwaras.

The gurdwaras under the mahants

In the nineteenth century, many historic gurdwaras had passed into the hands of hereditary mahants, who ran them as private property and often allowed practices contrary to the Gurus' teaching. Sri Harmandir Sahib itself was run by a manager appointed by the British government. Early in the twentieth century, the Singh Sabha movement had revived Sikh learning and identity, and a demand grew for the Panth to manage its own shrines.

A committee of the Panth

In October 1920 a group of Sikhs from castes the priests treated as low came to Sri Harmandir Sahib with an offering, which the priests refused. The sangat took a hukam from Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji, which welcomed them; the priests fled, and the Sikhs took charge of Sri Akal Takht Sahib. A month later, a large gathering formed a committee of 175 members to manage the gurdwaras, the SGPC. Within weeks the Shiromani Akali Dal was formed to organise volunteers.

The reform movement

The years that followed saw the morchas at Nankana Sahib, Guru Ka Bagh, Jaito and over the keys of the Toshakhana. The movement ended with the Sikh Gurdwaras Act of 1925, which gave the SGPC legal charge of the historic gurdwaras of Punjab, with its members elected by Sikh voters.

Its work today

The SGPC manages gurdwaras, runs schools, colleges and hospitals, publishes Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji and sets the Nanakshahi calendar that Hazri follows.