Supreme Court Dismisses Plea for National Holiday on Guru Gobind Singh's Anniversary

The Supreme Court dismissed a plea on Tuesday to establish a national holiday on Guru Gobind Singh's birth anniversary, known as 'Prakash Parv'. Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta determined that the petition by the All India Shiromani Singh Sabha did not warrant consideration for compelling national holiday guidelines.

This petition sought the introduction of a gazetted holiday in recognition of the 10th Sikh Guru’s contributions. Senior advocate Vikas Singh argued that a uniform policy for declaring public holidays is necessary, as current practices lack consistency.

Justice Mehta remarked on the multitude of existing religious holidays in India and expressed reluctance to add another. The petition highlighted concerns over arbitrary holiday declarations driven by political motives rather than standardized criteria. However, the bench concluded with a succinct dismissal, leaving policy formulation to other branches of governance.