Context:

• Nankana Sahib, the birthplace of first Sikh guru, Guru Nanak Dev, was also the site of the first big agitation by the SGPC to take back control of gurdwaras from mahants backed by the British.
• The centenary of Sri Nankana Sahib massacre, which is popularly known as Saka Nankana Sahib, is being marked in an event there on February 21 this year.

Efforts to free Nankana Sahib:

• The SGPC came to existence in November 1920, a month after Sikhs removed partial restrictions on Dalit rights inside Golden Temple in Amritsar.
• It started a gurdwara reform movement which was aimed at taking possession of historical Sikh Gurdwaras, which had turned into personal property of the priests, who were called mahants. These mahants were also accused of running practices from gurdwaras which were not approved in Sikhism.
• Sikh leaders made attempts to bring mahant to the negotiation table but their efforts failed.

The February massacre:

• Meanwhile, all the mahants and other groups, who were in control of Sikh gurdwaras, also organised themselves and started holding meetings against any move of the SGPC to take control away from them.
• They called “Sikh Sanatan Conference” in Lahore on February 19, 20 & 21, 1921. Some motivated Sikh leaders took it as an opportunity to take control of the Gurdwara Nankaka Sahib as Mahant Narain Das would be busy in Lahore.
• The unarmed Sikh jatha entered inside the gurdwara and with a plan to take possession of the gurdwara in a non-violent manner.
• On the other side, the mahant was all prepared for an armed attack and he leashed his men equipped with firearms, sticks and sharp-edged weapons on this jaths.

Taking control of the gurdwara:

• After the incident, Mahant Narain Das ran away, while the British police arrested 26 Pathans and sent them to Lahore in a special train. The incident, however, created an impression among Sikhs that the British government had played a hidden part in this massacre.
• Mahatma Gandhi reached Nankana Sahib on March 3, 1921. Gandhi said that the British government was part of this massacre. He also said that the cruelty of this massacre was more than that of Jallianwala Bagh.

SGPC movement takes first political turn:

• The British government also arrested Mahant Narain Das. Meanwhile, SGPC formed its own probe team and asked Mahatma Gandhi to be part of it. Gandhi asked Sikh leaders to give support to the non-cooperation movement of the Congress party.

SGPC joining non-cooperation movement angered British:

• The British government was not amused with the decision of SGPC leadership to be part of a political movement.
• Sikh leaders Kartar Singh Jhabbar, Teja Singh Bhuchar, Tara Singh Thethar, Bhai Lakha singh and others were arrested from Nankana Sahib for allegedly taking illegal control of gurdwaras on March 15, 1921.
• In May 1921, SGPC asked Sikhs to wear black clothes and turbans as protest against British government.
• However, Nankana Sahib Gurdwara agitation was just a big leap in Gurdwara Reform movement followed by Guru Ka Bagh Morcha and other agitations till Sikh Gurdwara Act came into existence in 1925.

https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-what-is-saka-nankana-sahib-why-it-matters-in-sikh-history-7196374/

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