Langah pardoned by 'panj pyaras' at Gurdaspur gurdwara

Ex-communicated by the Akal Takht, former Akali minister Sucha Singh Langah was pardoned by the 'panj pyaras' (five beloved ones of the Guru) at a historical Gurdwara Baba Banda Singh Bahadur here on Monday.

Langah was excommunicated by the Akal Takht, the top temporal seat of the Sikhs, from the Sikh community in October 2017 after he was booked in a rape case from which he was later acquitted.

Langah was booked in the rape case after a video purportedly showing him in an objectionable position with a woman had gone viral on social media at that time.

The woman, however, had later told the court that she had lodged the complaint under pressure, leading to Langah's acquittal in 2018.

At gurdwara here on Monday, he appeared before the 'panj pyaras' to seek apology.

The 'panj pyaras' awarded him 'tankhah' (religious punishment) and was asked to sweep floors of gurdwara for 21 days for an hour.

However, the ex-communication verdict against Langah by the Akal Takht remained intact.

Earlier, Langah had sought forgiveness for his misconduct from the Akal Takht.