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Onkar Singh in Amritsar
The stage is set amidst tight security for the elections to executive committee of the Shiromani Gurdwara Prabhandak Committee in Amritsar later on Tuesday afternoon with Parkash Singh Badal and Gurcharan Singh Tohra factions of the Akali Dal claiming support of majority in the 176 member effective house.
Police personnel, including mounted cops, have been deployed around the Golden Temple Complex, which also houses Teja Singh Samundari Hall in the SGPC Headquarter, where the polling will be held.
In the 176-member house, 12 votes are not counted as per order of the Punjab and Haryana high court
It is a neck and neck fight between former SGPC president Tohra and Badal for the coveted post of president of the SGPC.
Tohra claims he has the support of 85 SGPC members, including 15 women, while Badal claims that he has the support of 90-odd members.
Tohra has set up a seven-member committee to finalise the names of his group, while Badal has been authorised to nominate his candidate for the post of president of his faction.
Both sides have decided to announce their candidates before the meeting scheduled at 1300 IST.
Golden Temple Complex in particular and Amritsar city in general has been put under a thick blanket of security in the wake of bitter rivalry between Badal and Tohra factions to wrest control of the SGPC.
The effective Electoral College for election of president, senior vice president, junior vice president, general secretary and 10 EC members is 176 in the 190- member house.
While nine SGPC Members have died, the five head priests do not have voting rights.
The National Democratic Alliance has deputed four observers, including Union Labour Minister Sahib Singh Verma, for being present during the election process.
The observers and Badal will not be present in the Teja Singh Samundari Hall, Badal said.
The state government has appointed Nawanshahar Deputy Commissioner Ashok Goyal as the observer, official sources said. But he too will not be present inside the hallwhiel voting is in progress.
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