What is considered ‘kachi bani’? What can be sung in kirtan during divan?

As you may have guessed, there are protocols on what can be sung in the public Gurdwara setting. According to the Panthic Sikh Rehit Maryada – the document that functions as the Sikh code of conduct:

“The exposition can only be of the ten Guru’s writings or utterances, Bhai Gurdas’s writings, Bhai Nand Lal’s writings or of any generally accepted Panthak book or books of history (which are in agreement with the Guru’s tenets) and not of a book of any other faith. However, for illustration, references to a holy person’s teachings or those contained in a book may be made.”

Essentially, only those utterances are acceptable that exhibit the spirit of Sikhi and Gurmat traditions.