14 cases since 2016. Rising intolerance against religious shrines is worrisome.
A sudden surge in sacrilege-related incidents accompanied by subsequent murders in around half a decade is grabbing eyeballs of common people in Punjab.
On Monday night, Nihang Sikh Ramandeep Singh Mangu Math was apprehended for allegedly murdering a man for his irreverence at a Phagwara Gurudwara. This blasphemy-related killing increased the toll to 14 since 2016.
Of total 14 cases, five are intertwined with the Bargari sacrilege case, a prominent political issue in Punjab since 2015. Notably, between 2016 and 2022, five followers of the Sirsa-based Dera Sacha Sauda, accused or linked to the 2015 sacrilege of the Guru Granth Sahib in Faridkot, were murdered.
Both men and women lost their lives in such incidents as murderers show intolerance towards irreverence to Sikh holy shrines. Chronicle of such incidents are presented below.
2016:
On July 26, 2016, 47-year-old Balwinder Kaur was killed by two motorcyclists in broad daylight. She was accused of desecrating the Guru Granth Sahib in Ludhiana’s Ghawadi village. Five years later, two youths, Jaspreet Singh alias Nihal Singh and Gurpreet Singh alias Khalsa aka Baba, were sentenced to rigorous life imprisonment for killing Kaur.
On September 10, 2016, Kaur’s husband, Labh Singh, was later arrested, accused of allegedly murdering her for bringing shame to the family.
2021:
On July 3, 2021, chief of the Gurdwara Managing Committee Gurdaspur Gurjit Singh Saini and Daljit Singh were booked for allegedly killing Deepak, a General Reserve Engineer Force personnel for sacrilege at the gurdwara.
October 15, 2021, saw the alleged killing of Lakhbir Singh from Tarn Taran district by Nihang Sikhs. Singh was accused of sacrilege of the Sikh religious text.
December 18, 2021, involved an individual attempting to desecrate the Guru Granth Sahib during the recitation of Rahras Sahib at the Golden Temple in Amritsar. Beaten up by the public, the accused’s death was confirmed by the police. No arrest was made in this regard.
December 19, 2021, witnessed an unidentified youth beaten to death by a mob in Kapurthala district for alleged sacrilege. Gurdwara Nizampur Sahib’s Granthi Amarjit Singh was arrested in connection with the murder.
2023:
April 24, 2023, marked an incident at Gurdwara Kotwali Sahib of Morinda in Ropar district, where a person assaulted the priest and touched the Guru Granth Sahib.
The young man, caught by the public, was beaten up and handed over to the police. In jail, he complained of chest pain but died after being referred to Mansa Civil Hospital.
May 14, 2023, Nirmaljit Singh Saini shot a woman for drinking liquor inside the premises of Patiala’s historical Gurdwara Dukh Niwaran Sahib.
Surprisingly, official data on sacrilege cases registered in Punjab since 2015 is notably missing. However, during the Panthic Conference on July 26, 2021, officiating Jathedar Giani Harpreet Singh at the Sri Akal Takht Sahib secretariat claimed knowledge of at least 250 sacrilege incidents between March 2013 and February 2019.
Sukhdev Singh Phagwara, spokesman for the Alliance of Sikh Organizations, highlighted the absence of compiled data by any political party, emphasizing the need for a deeper understanding of sacrilege on such a large scale.