India, Jan. 5 -- Escalating the standoff between the AAP government and the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), Akal Takht acting Jathedar Giani Kuldeep Singh Gargaj on Monday summoned chief minister Bhagwant Mann for January 15. The summons follows allegations that Mann made derogatory remarks regarding Sikh traditions and tenets.

Mann is the second sitting Punjab CM to be summoned by the Sikhs' highest temporal seat. In 1986, Surjit Singh Barnala was declared tankhaiya (guilty of religious misconduct) and excommunicated for ordering a police action in the Golden Temple. He eventually sought atonement two years later.

Giani Gargaj said that Mann's comments on Sikh Rehat Maryada (code of conduct) and the principle of Daswand...