'Mentally Deranged' Man Arrested Over Alleged Sacrilege Attempt Outside Golden Temple

Amritsar: A man, believed to be mentally deranged, was arrested for allegedly desecrating pages of the Gutka sahib(sacred pages of the Gurbani) outside the revered Golden Temple in Punjab's Amritsar on Monday night, police said. The incident took place near the Shri Guru Arjan Dev Nivas outside the Darbar Sahib.

Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee President, Harjinder Singh Dhami said that the accused identified as Gurpreet Singh, was caught by the Sangat after he tore apart the parts of Sri Gutka Sahib and threw them outside Sri Harmandir Sahib late night on Monday. The Sangat caught him and beat him up and then handed him over to the police, Dhami said adding the accused was not mentally sound.

“But I want to ask why only the mentally ill are desecrating Sri Guru Granth Sahib or Gutka Sahib. This latest incident has happened on the occasion of Ghallughara Divas(Operation Bluestar anniversary), so the accused should be thoroughly questioned. A strict law like the death penalty should be made in this regard,” added Dhami.

A police officer said that the accused has been arrested and the police team is interrogating him.

The incident of desecration of Gutka Sahib near Guru Arjan Dev Niwas near Sri Darbar Sahib complex was strongly condemned by Jathedar Baba Tek of Takht Sri Damdama Sahib.

Talking to reporters in Bathinda, Baba Tek Singh Dhanaula said, "It is unfortunate that such an incident happened in a city like Amritsar where such a large police force is deployed”.

“The hearts of the Sikh community are being broken by such repeated incidents," he said while demanding that the Punjab government should take strict action against such bad elements.

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