Residents of Morinda, Punjab, staged large-scale protests after a man allegedly assaulted two Sikh priests and desecrated the 'Guru Granth Sahib' at a gurdwara on Monday. The accused, Jasvir Singh, was arrested by the police. A video of the incident circulated on social media, showing Singh entering the sanctum sanctorum of Kotwali Sahib gurdwara and hitting two 'granthis' who were reciting from the Guru Granth Sahib. He then threw the holy book on the ground. Devotees present in the shrine overpowered Singh and handed him over to the police, reported news agency PTI.
The incident sparked outrage among locals, who held a protest outside the Morinda Police station, demanding strict punishment for the accused. Markets in Morinda were closed in protest against the incident. Many political leaders, such as former chief ministers Amarinder Singh and Charanjit Singh Channi, demanded the strictest of punishments for the accused.
In response, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann condemned the incident and tweeted that anyone who committed the act of sacrilege would face the strictest punishment. He further stated that the honour of Sri Guru Granth Sahib is of utmost importance to them. Inspector General of Police Gurpreet Singh Bhullar reached Morinda to assess the situation.
Congress leader Partap Singh Bajwa urged the state government to give strict punishment to the accused and asked people to maintain peace and harmony. Charanjit Singh Channi also joined the protest against the incident in Morinda, PTI reported.
The incident was a reminder of the 2015 Guru Granth Sahib desecrations multiple sacrilege incidents were reported in Punjab. The series of incidents brought about a change in legislations. The Punjab Cabinet approved an amendment to Section 295A of the IPC and introduced life sentence for sacrilege of the Guru Granth Sahib.
Two years ago, a man was lynched for allegedly attempting to desecrate the Guru Granth Sahib at the Golden Temple in Amritsar.