Sacrilege Incidents Shake Punjab : Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi Hints At Poll Link, Sindhu Says Conspiracy To Disturb Peace

Picture : Twitter / ANI

A man was beaten to death in Kapurthala after being accused of sacrilege at a Gurdwara, the second such lynching in the state in 24 hours as Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi suggested that they might be linked to the upcoming elections.

As per PTI report, Channi visited Amritsar’s Golden Temple, the scene of the first incident on Saturday, and claimed that some ‘inimical forces or agencies’ may be at work ahead of the assembly polls early next year.

He appealed for calm and harmony. A special investigation team (SIT) has been asked to submit its report in the Amritsar case in two days.

Police in Kapurthala said there was ‘no visible sign’ of any sacrilege at the Gurdwara in Nizampur village on Kapurthala-Subhnapur road.

Three of their men were injured when they tried to save the victim, who they said appeared to be a migrant worker, from the mob.

Kapurthala Gurdwara manager Amarjit Singh claimed seeing the man disrespecting the ‘nishan sahib’ (religious flag) at the gurdwara.

In the first case too, police are yet to identify the man who jumped over the rails on Saturday evening in the Golden Temple sanctum sanctorum and allegedly picked up the ceremonial sword.

Police have registered FIRs over the alleged sacrilege attempts in both cases, but there was no immediate word on any case being lodged over the deaths. Political parties also largely stayed mum on this aspect.

Punjab Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu condemned the alleged sacrilege attempts at the Golden Temple in Amritsar and at a gurdwara in Kapurthala, saying conspiracies are being hatched to disturb peace in the state.

“Punjab is built on strong foundation of Oneness & universal brotherhood laid down by Guru Sahib. No divisive forces can destroy strong social fabric of Punjabi Community. Deliberate & malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings should be dealt with deterrent punishment,” Sidhu said in a tweet