New Delhi, Aug. 22 -- The Supreme Court on Friday refused to quash the criminal defamation proceedings against former Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal over his 2017 remarks. calling the Akhand Kirtani Jatha (AKJ) as the political front of banned terror outfit Babbar Khalsa International. AKJ is a religious organisation of the Sikh community consisting of baptised Sikhs and has a global presence. After Badal's petition was dismissed by the Punjab & Haryana high court in October 2025, his appeal was taken up on Friday by the top court which questioned him over his remarks reported in major newspapers in 2017 that he has not denied. A bench of justices Dipankar Datta and Sheel Nagu said, "You say this (Babbar Khalsa Internation...