By Mata Press Service

A court in the industrial city of Ludhiana, Punjab ordered Harnek Singh Grewal the leader of the Nanaksar sect to face charges in connection with a deadly riot on Oct 11, 2003, which left one man dead and several others injured.

Some were shot others were slashed with swords and attacked with bricks.

Ten followers of Harnek Singh Grewal, who allegedly were involved in the riot in the village of Siahar, have also been ordered to turn up in court, which is scheduled to hear the case next month.

Court documents obtained from India by The Asian Pacific Post allege that Harnek Singh Grewal in a telephone call from Canada told his followers “that all supporters of (his rival) Baba Mihan Singh be killed by fire shot”.

“They (the followers) exhorted their companions to kill supporters of Baba Mann Singh in case any of them happens to be present in the Gurudwara Sahib (temple in Siahar) at that time,” the court documents alleged.

Harnek Singh Grewal has denied the accusations claiming the charges are being orchestrated by his rivals as part of an on-going effort to oust him and take control of the groups’ assets.

The Nanaksar sect is a C$20 million religious global empire with a 7,000 acre land bank in B.C., Alberta and Ontario and thousands of more acres in India.

The sect owns a mansion in Richmond, B.C. and its place of worship is Richmond’s Nanaksar Gurdwara, on Westminster Highway under the auspices of the The Nanaksar Gurdwara-Gursikh Temple society which was incorporated on July 12, 1979.

After the deadly riot in 2003, Grewal has kept a low profile mainly in Edmonton, where he has another temple.

He has denied the allegations describing them as false and concocted adding that his name is being dragged into the incident because of a deep rooted conspiracy hatched by his opponents who want to grab control of the religious empire he oversees.

The Nanaksar movement was founded by Baba Nand Singh near Jagroan in Punjab and took root following his death in 1943.

Two of his closest disciples was Baba Mihan Singh of Siahar - the father of Mann Singh and mentor of Harnek Singh Grewal” the two leaders currently at odds.

After Mihan Singh founded the Nanaksar Ashram in Siahar, he went around the world to spread the teachings of Nanak, Sikhism’s first guru.

The universally revered holy man taught his followers to build temples on their own time to minimize costs and as acts of sacrifice.

This led to the construction of the Richmond’s Nanaksar Gurdwara. Similar temples were built in Toronto, Edmonton and Coventry in the United Kingdom.

During his latter years Baba Mihan Singh was looked after constantly by Harnek Singh Grewal and his son Mann Singh.

In Sept 1994 at age 88, Baba Mihan Singh died in the Richmond Nanaksar temple - a temple built with unified community support that is now the Canadian epicentre of the religious strife.

After Baba Mihan Singh’s death, Harnek Singh Grewal became the leader of the Nanaksar sect.

His rival, Mann Singh returned to Siahar where he maintained a low profile performing religious duties. “He wasn’t interested in the politics or the assets of the temple and wanted to live the life of his father teaching and praying,” said one of Mann Singh’s disciples.

The Nanaksar movement is known for its strict tenets, including celibacy for its leaders and abstinence from alcohol.

In November 2000, an Alberta police officer found Harnek Singh Grewal slumped behind the wheel of a vehicle at the West Edmonton Mall. His breath test showed a reading of .160, twice the legal limit.

Grewal, who claimed to be a labourer in court, plead guilty to one count of being over the legal blood-alcohol limit.

He was fined C$600 and handed a 12-month driving suspension.

When word of this case began to seep through the community, others started coming forward with tales of drinking parties on temple grounds.

The schism in this Sikhism sect hit the headlines in late 2002, when dissidents in the Richmond Nanaksar temple filed a petition in the B.C. Supreme Court to oust Harnek Singh Grewal as their leader.

The dissidents made explosive allegations in court documents claiming that the 67-year-old Grewal had lost C$45,000 in temple money while gambling in Las Vegas, consumed alcohol on temple grounds, promoted the philosophy of free sex and abused donations by building a million dollar mansion in Richmond for himself and his 25-year-old bride from India.

The dissidents wanted the B.C. Supreme Court to remove the directors of the temple society, stop Harnelk Singh Grewal’s involvement with the temple and appoint an independent auditor to check the society’s financial affairs. The temple directors denied all the allegations.

B.C. Supreme Court Justice Laura Gerow disagreed with every major point advanced by the dissidents saying they were merely challenging the succession of Harnek Singh Grewal to the position of high priest of the sect in 1994.

The court has no role in religious matters, she ruled saying the petitioners had advanced no evidence to back up their statements.

The court also said there was no need for an auditor to review the temple finances.

The dissidents, having lost their battle in the B.C. courts, then took their complaints to the Body of Sikh Holy Men in Punjab or the Sant Samaj, which formed a panel to probe the allegations of misconduct against Harnek Singh Grewal.

According to Indian law, if Harnek Singh Grewal does not answer the charges in India, a warrant of arrest is likely to be issued.

He could also be declared a “proclaimed offender” and arrested if he sets foot on Indian Territory.