Bibi Jagir Kaur became the first female president of the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee.
The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee, commonly called the SGPC, is a major elected Sikh institution responsible for administering many historic gurdwaras in Punjab and nearby regions. Bibi Jagir Kaur’s election marked a significant milestone for women’s representation in Sikh institutional leadership.
She first became SGPC president in 1999 and later held the office again. She was also active in Punjab politics and associated with the Shiromani Akali Dal. Her career is distinct from that of historic Sikh women such as Mai Bhago, a seventeenth-century warrior, and Mata Gujri, the mother of Guru Gobind Singh.
The SGPC was founded in 1920, decades before Kaur’s historic election. Its president is chosen through the organization’s internal electoral process.