The attack on Punjab’s Shiromani Akali Dal president Sukhbir Singh Badal at Nanded in Maharashtra has brought into focus not only the security failures surrounding the two attempts on his life, but also a disturbing political pattern in Punjab: individuals accused of violence or confrontation are increasingly being turned into symbols of resistance, given political support and, in some cases, followed into electoral politics. The latest incident took place on 13 August at Gurdwara Mata Sahib Devan Ji Mugat in Nanded, where 62-year-old Jaspal Singh, dressed in Nihang attire, allegedly attacked Badal with a kirpan as the latter came down the steps after paying obeisance.
A security officer intervened and prevented the attack from becoming more serious. Badal suffered an injury to his hand and was taken to hospital. Jaspal Singh, who had reportedly been serving as a sewadar at the gurdwara for about two years, was detained. Police have said that his motive is still being investigated. The incident immediately brought back memories of the 4 December 2024 attack on Badal at Sri Darbar Sahib in Amritsar. On that occasion, Narain Singh Chaura allegedly opened fire at Badal while he was performing religious penance imposed by the Akal Takht. The attempt was foiled when a person standing nearby pushed the gun away.
Chaura was arrested at the spot. SAD leader Bikram Singh Majithia has described the Nanded attack as the second assassination attempt on Badal and termed it a “total failure of intelligence”. He has questioned how an individual could reach a Z plus protectee at two different religious shrines despite security arrangements. He has also demanded that the December 2024 Darbar Sahib incident and the Nanded attack be examined together, including the intelligence inputs, security arrangements, movements of the attackers and any possible links between the two incidents.
The questions surrounding Chaura remain particularly significant because of his background. Chaura was identified after the 2024 shooting as a militant with a history linked to the period of terrorism in Punjab. Reports at the time said he had links with Babbar Khalsa and had received training from ISI Pakistan. He was granted bail in March 2025, around three and a half months after the attack on Badal. The release raised questions among those demanding a deeper investigation into the case, particularly about the larger network and circumstances surrounding the attack.
But the Chaura episode also exposed another dimension of Punjab’s politics. Instead of the alleged attacker being uniformly treated as an accused in an attempt on a political leader’s life, sections of the hardline Sikh ecosystem rallied around him. His name became part of a wider political argument against the Badal family, and sections of the radical camp portrayed the action through the prism of anger against the former SAD government.
That is why describing such incidents simply as “Panthic anger” risks missing the larger political development. There is legitimate anger in Punjab over the 2015 sacrilege cases, the Behbal Kalan and Kotkapura police firing incidents and several decisions of the previous SAD government. There is also legitimate opposition to Sukhbir Badal’s leadership and to any political alliance he may pursue. But political opposition and violence are not the same thing. The concern is that a radical fringe is learning that an attack on a political opponent can create political visibility, sympathy and, eventually, electoral opportunity. Recent incidents provide examples of this pattern.
THE SUDHIR SURI CASE
Shiv Sena leader Sudhir Suri was shot dead in Amritsar in November 2022 while sitting on a protest outside a temple. Sandeep Singh alias Sunny was arrested in the case and is facing trial. What followed was striking. Sandeep Singh did not simply remain a criminal accused. His name acquired political significance among sections of the antiBadal and hardline Sikh camp. In 2025, his brother Mandeep Singh was fielded by Akali Dal Waris Punjab De, led by jailed MP Amritpal Singh, in the Tarn Taran Assembly bypoll. The party described the candidature as a Panthic choice and linked it to the sentiments surrounding Sandeep Singh. The episode demonstrated how a person facing trial in a murder case could become part of a political narrative and how that narrative could subsequently enter an election campaign. The development did not stop there. Sandeep Singh’s name gained further prominence after he allegedly attacked former police officer Suba Singh inside Patiala jail. Following the incident, Nihang groups reportedly attended the former officer’s bhog and raised slogans in support of Sandeep Singh. The episode further elevated him among sections of the radical camp. His brother was subsequently brought into electoral politics. The sequence is important: an accused in a political murder case became a symbol for sections of the Panthic camp, and his family member was then given an electoral platform.
AJNALA AND AMRITPAL SINGH’S ELECTORAL VICTORY
The most consequential example is the February 2023 Ajnala episode involving Amritpal Singh. Amritpal Singh and his supporters stormed the Ajnala police station demanding the release of his associate Lovepreet Singh. Supporters carrying swords and other weapons confronted the police, and several policemen were injured. The incident generated national concern because it showed an armed mobilisation against the state machinery. Yet the political consequences for Amritpal Singh were very different from what such an episode might normally produce. In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, Amritpal Singh contested from Khadoor Sahib while being detained in Dibrugarh jail under the National Security Act. He won the seat by more than 1.97 lakh votes. The message from that electoral outcome was unmistakable: confrontation with the state did not necessarily destroy electoral prospects. In that case, it became part of the political identity around which a campaign was built.
THE DISTURBING OPTICS IN NANDED
The Nanded incident has produced another troubling visual. After Jaspal Singh was overpowered following the attack, his turban came off during the scuffle. Before police took him away, people at the spot helped him retie his turban. There is an important distinction here. The optics become significant when viewed against the broader pattern in which attackers, accused persons and confrontational figures can subsequently acquire symbolic status among sections of the political and religious fringe. The issue is whether that anger is being converted into a justification for violence and whether individuals who cross that line are then transformed into political symbols.
