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Indian Express
01-06-2025
- Indian Express
10 yrs on, justice in 2015 sacrilege case remains a distant dream — ‘Only god can do justice'
June 1 will mark the completion of 10 years since Bir of Guru Granth Sahib was stolen from Burj Jawahar Singh Wala village in Faridkot district. 'Many governments have come and gone since then, but I don't think justice will be served in the sacrilege cases. Only God can do justice,' Gora Singh, based on whose complaint an FIR for Bir theft was registered, told The Indian Express. Every year on June 1, villagers observe the Bir theft incident anniversary at the village gurdwara, where Gora Singh is still a priest. Gora Singh has given countless interviews in the past 10 years. 'Police tortured me after Gurdev Singh was murdered in 2016. The CBI questioned me and put me through a lie-detector test. However, villagers stood by me through all this,' Gora Singh said. Asked what has changed in the past 10 years, Gora Singh said, 'One thing that has changed, not only at our gurdwara but all over the state and across the world, is that most of the gurdwaras are now under CCTV camera surveillance. Second, in most gurdwaras, the Bir of Guru Granth Sahib is enclosed in glass cabins. Before 2015, gurdwaras were open places where everyone was welcomed. Everyone is welcome even now, but whenever an unidentified face appears at a gurdwara, we become suspicious. That was not the case before 2015. Back then, we assumed coming to the gurdwara meant coming to seek help or pay respects to Guru Granth Sahib Ji.' Torn pages of the Guru Granth Sahib were found in the streets of Bargari village on October 12, 2015. It is believed that these were pages from the Bir stolen on June 1, 2015. After the sacrilege incident, two Sikhs, Krishan Bhagwan Singh and Gurjit Singh, were killed in alleged police firing at Behbal Kalan on October 14, 2015, which created turmoil in the state, leading to the removal of the then Punjab Police chief Sumedh Saini. However, no police officer has been sentenced. The case is still pending in the court. Besides, the investigation into the sacrilege incident has not moved forward for the past three years. On November 9, 2015, a huge gathering 'Sarbat Khalsa' was organised in Amritsar, where serious allegations were levelled against the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) in connection with the sacrilege incident. After the conviction of Dera Sirsa head Gurmeet Ram Rahim in a rape and murder case in 2017, the first arrests in the 2015 sacrilege cases were made in June 2018 during the Congress regime. Between June and November 2018, police arrested around 26 Dera Sirsa followers in connection with the Bir theft, installation of defamatory posters from September 24 to 25, 2015 and the sacrilege incident reported on October 12, 2015. However, no one has been convicted so far. Three Dera Sirsa followers were convicted in connection with an incident related to the 2015 sacrilege at Malke village in Moga district. The Dera and Sikh tussle dates back to May 2007 when Sikhs alleged Ram Rahim of copying the attire and idea behind Guru Gobind Singh's foundation of Khalsa on the Vaisakhi of 1699. The Dera head is also accused in the 2015 sacrilege case as a 'conspirator'. However, the Bir theft and sacrilege incident triggered a series of sacrilege incidents across the state in the following years. There is no official data on the number of sacrilege cases registered in Punjab since 2015. Speaking at the Panthic Conference called by the Akal Takht Secretariat at the shrine on July 26, 2021, officiating Jathedar Giani Harpreet Singh claimed that at least 250 sacrilege incidents had come to his knowledge between March 2013 and February 2019. 'According to the Akal Takht data, from March 4, 2013, to February 27, 2017, 143 sacrilege incidents occurred (during the SAD-BJP government). We have a list of 104 incidents from February 2017 to February 2019 (during the Congress regime in the state). The data is compiled by Sikh organisations,' Sukhdev Singh Phagwara, spokesman for the Alliance of Sikh Organisations, said. Moreover, between 2016 and 2025, 15 individuals accused or suspected of different sacrilege cases were murdered. On the political front, the SAD remained the biggest loser. After the Bargari incident, the party lost its core vote bank — the Sikhs — and has not recovered as yet. Captain Amarinder Singh had promised justice in the sacrilege incidents after becoming the chief minister in 2017. The 2015 sacrilege case was pursued during his tenure, and some Dera Sirsa followers were arrested. However, he later faced allegations that his team, including the then Advocate General of Punjab Atul Nanda, 'mishandled' the case of police firing at Kotakpura, related to sacrilege, in which two Sikhs were killed. This led to the resignation of IPS officer Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh, who was investigating the Kotakpura and Behbal Kalan police firing case. Kunwar Vijay Pratap later joined the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) before the 2022 Assembly Elections and was elected as the MLA from Amritsar North. He was the party's poster boy during the Assembly elections campaign. However, Kunwar Vijay Pratap was eventually sidelined in the AAP government. He later believed that his 'party was not serious about delivering justice in the sacrilege cases'.
Time of India
26-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Unexpected meet of Akal Takht leaders sparks talk of SAD alliances
Amritsar: An unanticipated joint appearance of Giani Kuldeep Singh Gargaj, the officiating jathedar of Akal Takht, and Bhai Dhian Singh Mand, the parallel officiating jathedar of Akal Takht appointed during the 2015 Sarbat Khalsa, has caught Panthic circles off guard. Photographs of the meeting, uploaded on Giani Gargaj's Facebook page and circulated among mediapersons by the Akal Takht secretariat, has fuelled speculation among Sikh religious and political circles. According to sources, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) is believed to be seeking to strengthen its political position by forging ties with hardline Sikh factions. Political analysts view the meeting as an effort to prevent these hardline groups from aligning with Waris Punjab De, a move that could further marginalise SAD already grappling with declining influence in the Panthic circles. The Facebook post, accompanying the photographs, reads, "Bhai Dhian Singh Mand, associated with a struggling (revolutionary) family, whose three brothers were martyred during the struggle, has been unwell for some time. A visit was made to his home to check on his health and meet with him." Stating that Mand's three brothers were allegedly killed in police encounters during the period of 'struggle' (militancy) in Punjab, Jarnail Singh Sakhira, the chief organiser of Sarbat Khalsa and a confidant of Bhai Dhian Singh Mand, said that Mand was unaware of Giani Gargaj's visit, which was sudden and unexpected. According to Sakhira, Giani Gargaj came with the intention of discussing "certain matters", but Mand insisted that such discussions could only take place in a private one-on-one meeting. Sakhira further said that team Sarbat Khalsa previously received informal 'feelers' from Waris Punjab De leader Amritpal Singh, detained under the National Security Act, seeking their support. However, the team chose to remain neutral. "We interpret Giani Gargaj's visit as an attempt to secure Mand's support, which could potentially strengthen the SAD's position," Sakhira said, adding that another meeting between the two religious leaders could be held in the future.
Hindustan Times
28-04-2025
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Op Black Thunder-1: Power of persistent persuasion
April 29, 1986, was a defining day in the volcanic decade of the '80s in Punjab. After the death of Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, a five-member Panthic Committee, an underground militants' executive body, was formed by the Sarbat Khalsa in 1986. On April 29 that year, this committee held a press conference in the Golden Temple precincts, and proclaimed the formation of a sovereign state of Khalistan. The committee notified the formation of its armed force – the Khalistan Commando Force – for Sikh struggle. It appealed to the United Nations and foreign countries to recognise the new state. Bhindranwale had refrained from recognising Khalistan. For, he was conscious that it had no popular base among Sikhs. However, he did say that the foundation of Khalistan would be laid the day the state defiled the sanctity of the temple (by ordering security forces into it). Two years after Operation Bluestar in June 1984, the Panthic Committee's declaration was to carry Bhindranwale's pronouncement forward. The administration was oblivious of the declaration, till the media flashed the news. The first response of the government was disbelief. I was deputy commissioner of Amritsar. Chief secretary PH Vaishnav quizzed me, 'Have you understood what the chief minister wants?' I responded, 'Yes sir, no entry into the temple.' He added, 'Double your chase outside, these guys cannot disappear into thin air.' The entry of troops into the temple complex would have been viewed by the Panth as then chief minister Surjit Singh Barnala's iteration, an affirmation of (former PM) Indira Gandhi's military Operation Bluestar. Hence, that option was considered taboo. Barnala's caveat That day, Barnala was in Delhi and the central leadership prevailed upon him to act – a signal must go to the secessionists of the state's zero tolerance of separatism. He was 'persuaded' to order action. Accompanied by then Union minister of state for defence Arun Singh, former Punjab governor Arjun Singh, and then National Security Guard (NSG) director RT Nagarani, Barnala landed at Raja Sansi airport at an unearthly hour of 12.30am on April 30 and directed the district administration to clear the Golden temple complex of the extremists. Barnala, however, laid a caveat: The forces shall not enter the sanctum sanctorum, Golden Temple or fire towards it. The memory of the destruction caused to Akal Takht and other parts of the complex in Operation Bluestar and the adverse reaction it had evoked, was too fresh and its repeat had to be avoided at all costs. To strengthen the local police force, NSG commandos led by two Major Generals and paramilitary troops were flown in, starting early on April 30 morning. Punjab Police were tasked with clearing the Sarai complex, while the NSG was to operate in the sacred spaces in and around the Parikrama. To avoid bloodshed, appeals were made on the public address system to pilgrims to come out of the precincts. However, these calls met with counter announcements from the militant-appointed jathedar of Akal Takht, Gurdev Singh Kaunke, asking the pilgrims to resist the forces and if need be sacrifice their lives. To complicate matters further, the jathedar moved from Akal Takht to the sanctum sanctorum, along with all his men. No entry, no fire The NSG Generals were, therefore, cautioned by PC Dogra, the then deputy inspector general of police, that the commandos would be vulnerable to sharpshooters from the rooftop but the troops should not fire back towards Golden Temple; they were asked to brief and sensitise their men. This, however, invited a sharp reaction from the Generals, who were not willing to constrict the options of the troops. An argument followed, with a General telling us that his men were not statues – if fired upon, they would fire back. The Generals were not wrong, but as the tempers rose, I had to tell them that as district magistrate, I withdraw the state government's requisition of the NSG and the troops could go back from where they came. Then Punjab DGP Julio Ribeiro, who was with us in the control room, was wiser. He called up Barnala and Delhi for instructions and they endorsed the caveat of 'no-entry' and 'no-fire' towards the sanctum sanctorum. The Generals now fell in line with the caveat. It did not take long for them to complete the operation – the Parikrama, the multi-storeyed rooms around it, and other sacred buildings were all cleared of the civilians, but according to the instructions given to them, the NSG did not enter the sanctum sanctorum or fire towards it. In the entire operation lasting over three hours, only few shots were fired, resulting in the unfortunate death of a civilian and bullet injuries to four others. However, the men ensconced in Darbar Sahib were yet to be dealt with, but the NSG wanted to hand over the rest of the operation to the civil administration. Their mandate was not to enter the sanctum sanctorum or fire towards it and they had complied with it. Leap of faith This mandate applied equally to us. We had two options – to continue the siege in the hope to wear out those inside Golden Temple, or withdraw the caveat and permit the NSG to proceed. Stuck in this precarious situation, the then senior superintendent of police, SS Virk, and I decided to take a risk. Carrying a handheld hailer and unarmed, we climbed down the stairs from Ghanta Ghar Deori to the Parikrama. In the open white marbled expanse, two of us stood exposed from all sides in direct line of fire of the militants. I rested the loudspeaker on the edge of the sarowar and in chaste Punjabi disclosed our identities. Announcing our intent, I emphasised the imperative of maintaining the sanctity of the sacred place. We assured the militants that no harm would come to anyone and appealed to them to come out of the sanctum sanctorum. Repeated announcements, however, did not evoke any response. In the still of the night, we feared the worst, but kept repeating the appeal – 'Mein sangat nu benti kar da ha ke Darbar Sahib to bahar aa jaan (I request the congregation to come out of Darbar Sahib)'. Suddenly, around 4am we saw movement on the roof of the sanctum sanctorum. Waving a cloth to catch our attention, someone yelled, 'We have no faith in you. Call Giani Puran Singh (a temple priest, who was held in high esteem by the radicals.' Giani Puran Singh was persuaded to go inside the sanctum sanctorum as an emissary. To his credit, he was able to convince the radicals to send a few representatives to negotiate with us. Sitting in the Parikrama and assisted by Puran Singh, we impressed on the five representatives of the militants the futility of holding on inside the Darbar Sahib. The religious ceremonies had been disrupted and Waheguru would hold them accountable, we said. Peaceful end to crisis The persistent persuasion finally paid off. As many as 135 people came out of Golden Temple in a single-line formation, without anyone firing a shot. It was a peaceful end to a perilous situation. The operation was over by 6am and the temple's religious ceremonies were restored. In a signed press statement, the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC)-appointed high priests welcomed the restoration of maryada (religious dignity and ceremonies) in the temple. The security forces withdrew from the precincts. The operation led to the arrest of 55 people of various hues of militancy and recovery of a few small arms. Persuasion had proved more powerful than the guns and tanks of Operation Bluestar. rameshinders@ The writer is a former chief secretary of Punjab and author of the book, Turmoil in Punjab: An Insider's Account. Views expressed are personal.
