The year was 1802. Just a year earlier, Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the Lion of Punjab, had declared himself the king of Punjab.
Soon, he found himself tied to a tree, barebacked. Ready to face the punishment of 100 lashes.
Akal Takht, irked over Ranjit Singh's love marriage to a Muslim dancer, Moran Sarkar, had declared the Maharaja a "tankhaiya" (guilty of religious misconduct) and handed him a punishment of 100 lashes.
The Maharaja submitted to the authority of the religious leaders and presented himself for public flogging. But the large congregation gathered at the site could not watch their King's plight and sought forgiveness for him from the Akali Takht. The Maharaja was let go with just one lash on his back.
This incident from over two centuries ago has stood as a testament to the Akal Takht's unquestioned supremacy.
Cut to 2026.
On a cold January morning, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann walked into the Akal Takht complex at the Golden Temple in Amritsar. He was summoned by the temporal authority over a video that purportedly showed him disrespecting the Sikh gurus. Mann explained himself, but the Jathedar (Takht head) was not impressed. Seven months later, Bhagwant Mann is declared "anti-Guru", with whom "Sikh community would have nothing to do".
The two incidents - Maharaj to Mann - bookend the supreme authority the Akal Takht has held over the Sikh community and psyche.
The Takht Of Power
Founded in 1606 by Guru Hargobind as the Takht (throne) of temporal justice, Akal Takht doesn't have any legal mandate or political base, but immense sway over the Sikhs. It continues to summon the powerful and demand explanations. To underpin the essence of humility and accountability, the takht often makes a spectacle of its "punishments' to the powerful - a minister sweeping the road outside a gurudwara, a former chief minister cleaning shoes as the gurudwara doorstep. All is tailored to evoke a sense of awe and loyalty from the Sangat (community), which abhors the political culture of impunity.
The message is clear: a neta may evade the law but can't escape the Takht.
Maharajas To Neta: All Bow
Bhagwant Mann is not the first leader in modern times to face the Takht's scrutiny. Two of his ministers in the last year appeared before the Akal Takht and publicly accepted its authority.
Bhagwant Mann appeared before the Akal Takht at Golden Temple on January 15
In August 2025, Education Minister Harjot Singh Bains appeared to explain a government-organised function marking the 350th martyrdom anniversary of Guru Tegh Bahadur which featured song and dance. Bains accepted the religious punishment imposed by the Takht. He walked barefoot and cleaned devotees' footwear at a gurdwara in Anandpur Sahib.
In November 2025, Tourism and Cultural Affairs Minister Tarunpreet Singh Sond was summoned over a wall painting of Guru Gobind Singh at the Bhai Jeevan Singh Memorial in Anandpur Sahib. Sond later apologised publicly stating that it was the "duty of every Sikh to bow before the Takht".
The most spectacular Takht action in the recent times, before the Mann verdict, was on former deputy CM Sukhbir Singh Badal over alleged inaction in the 2015 sacrilege case. The punishment required him to perform humble, selfless service (sewa) at the Golden Temple in Amritsar and other gurdwaras as penance. And he did all that.
The Takht also revoked the title of Fakhr-e-Qaum (Pride of the Community) that had been conferred on Sukhbir's father, Parkash Singh Badal - a five-time Chief Minister and the grand old man of Punjab politics - over "anti-Sikh" actions of the then Akali Dal government.
Sukhbir Badal performed sewa at a gurduwara after punishment by the Akal Takht
Another notable punishment by the Takht was in 2017 when it "chastised" 40 MLAs and Ministers for violating its directive against seeking support of Dera Chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim. Current Congress Punjab chief Amarinder Singh Warring was part of the 40 leaders "censured" by the Takht.
Mann Of The Moment?
While for centuries, rulers and netas have visibly bowed to its authority, Bhagwant Mann is probably the first to directly confront the Akal Takht. He has denied the video allegation, presented his own forensic evidence to prove the Takht decision was wrong and has also called out the Takht's political affiliations.
Without naming the current head of Sri Akal Takht Sahib, Giani Kuldeep Singh Gargaj, Mann said, "One 'Jathedar' assumed office in the early hours fearing backlash and now they are conspiring against me under the garb of religion. These people have no agenda except to defame me by hook or by crook."
Gargaj is seen as a political appointment and close to the Akali Dal. His hushed appointment took place on March 10, 2025 after the temporal heads of Akal Takht and Takht Damdama Sahib were removed in a controversial move by the SAD-backed Shiromani Gurdwara Parbhandhak Committee (SGPC).
The chief minister has alleged that the Akalis are misusing religion for their political interests. Akali Dal is traditionally seen to be hobnobbing with the Akal Takht and managing its appointments.
Panth, Polls And Powerplay
It is common knowledge in Punjab that Takht edicts can make or break political careers. So, the action on the chief minister ahead of the elections, slated next year, cannot be seen in isolation from the state's politics.
All his rivals - Akalis, BJP, Congress -- have pounced on the chief minister, demanding his resignation over the Takht's verdict
The Takht in another sweeping action has also summoned Sikh MLAs and ministers to appear before it on June 29 to explain the unanimous passage of the new Sacrilege Law in the Punjab Assembly. Non-Sikh ministers have been asked to submit a written explanation.
The escalation comes after the Takht had earlier given the Punjab government a 15-day ultimatum to remove what it termed "objectionable clauses" from the legislation. Clearly the aim is to keep the Mann versus Akal Takht narrative burning and take it beyond one video.
The BJP has declared that the Sikh Union Ministers will not deal with the chief minister in deference to the Takht ruling.
All this is not happening in isolation. The political underpinnings are hard to miss: Isolating and cornerning the chief minister on the issue of Sikh identity ahead of the elections.
Mann's Challenge
For Bhagwant Mann, the challenge is more moral and political than legal. For a chief minister who has tried to convey an image of accessibility and humility, the verdict of a boycott from the highest temporal authority is a direct attack on his image.
It also threatens to shift the election narrative from governance to religious identity.
Internally, it may also not bode well for the AAP, which is already hit by desertions in its parliamentary party. Sikh MLAs and leaders of the party may come under pressure to distance themselves from the chief minister in an election year in the face of the historic edict.
This is Mann's inquisition by fire. Can he brave the Takht tempest?
