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Gajinder Singh in photo, along with the flight he hijacked (left); Akal Takht (right)

The Akal Takht, the highest temporal seat of Sikhism, has decided to confer the ‘Panth Sewak’ award on Gajinder Singh, one of the five men from the Dal Khalsa who hijacked the Delhi-Srinagar Indian Airlines flight IC423, with 117 on board, to Lahore on September 29, 1981.

Currently residing in Pakistan's Lahore, Gajinder spent 14 years in a prison of the neighbouring country in the case of plane hijacking that was done for the release of militant leader Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale.

After a terror attack on Indian Parliament in 2001, the union home ministry had shared a list with Pakistan to extradite 20 persons, including Gajinder. They were released in 1994. While two of the hijackers returned to India, the other three decided to stay back.

India had put Gajinder Singh’s name in the list of 20 “most wanted” terrorists in January 2002 and had been seeking his extradition from Pakistan.

“The award is being given to Gajinder Singh to hail his work and sacrifices for the community,” said an Akal Takht secretariat employee.

Justifying the award, Dal Khalsa spokesman Kanwar Pal Singh said, “We have serious objections to India’s viewpoint on Gajinder Singh. The decision of the government to label him as a ‘terrorist’ is unjustified. He is not a killer or a criminal. He is a man of politics. He wanted to change the system. He has never shown any prejudice or discrimination towards any religion or culture. He struggled for Sikh rights but never took up arms to accomplish the mission. The charges of sedition against him doesn’t fall under the definition of terrorism. Sedition is not a terrorist act. He has already spent 13 years and four months in Lahore jail for his act”.

Besides, former Damdami Taksal head late Sant Giani Gurbachan Singh Bhindranwale will be given the ‘Panth Rattan’ award.

This comes after Akal Takht's chief (Jathedar) Giani Harpreet Singh's assertion that if Government would offer, they would accept Khalistan as all Sikhs want it.