Man attempts 'sacrilege' at Golden Temple, inquiry on

Neeraj Bagga

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, December 18

An unidentified man allegedly tried to commit sacrilege at the Golden Temple here on Saturday evening. Sources said the man entered the sanctum sanctorum and tried to place a ‘kirpan’ (sword) near Rumala Sahib. He was nabbed by SGPC employees and whisked away. His body was later found near the SGPC office within the temple complex.

Harjinder Singh Dhami, SGPC chief, termed it as a conspiracy to bring a bad name to the Sikh faith. “The incident requires a thorough probe to expose the forces behind it,” he said. The incident was captured by a private satellite TV channel. A video clip went viral on social media following which members of various Sikh organisations, including Nihangs, rushed to the site.

Amritsar Police Commissioner Dr Sukhchain Singh Gill said: “When a police team reached there, the man was already dead. The body was found near the entrance gate of the SGPC office. Efforts are underway to identify the deceased and appropriate action will be taken on the basis of eyewitness accounts.”

Earlier on Wednesday, SGPC employees had handed over to the police a man identified as Ranbir Singh for allegedly throwing ‘gutka’ into the Golden Temple sarovar. Paramjit Singh Sarna, former president of the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee, and Karnail Singh Peer Mohammad of the SAD-Sanyukt denounced the incident.

Former Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal said the crime was “deeply shocking and exceedingly painful”. It had caused “deep anguish and outrage in the minds of the Sikh masses all over the world”, he said.

Bhagwant Mann, president of Aam Aadmi Party’s Punjab unit, said, “The incident is very unfortunate and I am deeply hurt by it. May God bless Punjab and Punjabis.”