Golden Temple sacrilege: Case registered against dead accused, SIT formed

Amritsar, Dec 19: Punjab Police is trying to ascertain the identity of a man, who was beaten to death after he allegedly attempted to commit sacrilege inside the sanctum sanctorum of the Golden Temple in Amritsar, and it has been established that he spent a few hours inside the complex. Deputy Chief Minister Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa held a meeting in Amritsar (when) with the deputy commissioner, the police commissioner, the inspector general of police (border range), the Amritsar Rural SSP and other officials.

A case was registered against the unidentified man late Saturday night under IPC sections 295A (deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs) and 307 (attempt to murder), Amritsar Police Commissioner Sukchain Singh Gill said on Sunday.

He said footage obtained from all the cameras at the Golden Temple is being examined to collect information about the accused. The footage shows that the accused entered the Golden Temple around 11 am on Saturday and slept for a few hours in front of the Akal Takht, the supreme temporal seat of the Sikhs, the police commissioner said. The incident occurred after 6 pm.

The man jumped across the railings inside the sanctum sanctorum of the Golden Temple on Saturday evening, picked up the ceremonial sword and reached near the place where a Sikh priest was reciting the holy Guru Granth Sahib.

He was caught by Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) task force members. When he was being taken to the SGPC office, the angry congregation beat him to death.

A special investigation team (SIT) has been set up to probe an alleged desecration attempt at the Golden Temple in Amritsar even as police are trying to ascertain the identity of the man. —(PTI)

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