News Analysis India

Tag: Golden Temple

  • Third blast near Golden Temple, five accused arrested all three blast cases solved

    Express News Service

    CHANDIGARH: A third low-intensity blast occurred near Golden Temple in Amritsar late last night. Meanwhile, the Punjab Police has arrested five alleged suspects including a newly-wed couple, and solved all three blast cases.

    Sources said that this blast took place around 12.30 PM on the intervening night of Wednesday and Thursday at the Galliara area (pathway around the Golden Temple) near Guru Ram Das Inn (Sarai) in the vicinity of the Golden Temple. In the CCTV footage, one could see that the suspect allegedly threw the bomb from the window of a washroom on the second floor of the Inn into Galiara.

    Among the accused who have been arrested included a newly-wed couple who were staying in room number 225 of the Inn and two bags and also some torn papers were recovered from them by the police.

    In a few minutes, the local police reached the spot and also the forensic teams were called and the area was cordoned off. It took the police about half an hour to locate the exact spot where this explosion took place.

    Shiromani Gurdwara Parbhandak Committee (SGPC) President Harjinder Singh Dhami that the SGPC staffers including Tajinder Singh who were on duty rushed to the spot after today’s blast that appeared on one of the cameras. As they reached the spot, the accused had already left. “Our staffer came back to the CCTV room and rolled back the particular footage only to zero in on one of the suspected accused.

    Since the whole area in and around the holy shrine is covered with CCTV cameras, the suspect was traced and caught by our staffers. By that time, the policemen too had reached the spot and he was arrested. Later the other suspects were arrested,’’ he said.

    Dhami announced enhancing vigil and setting up CCTV cameras in and around the Golden Temple as he termed that the policing was inefficient. “In the span of six days, three explosions took place in close proximity to each and the police remained clueless. This shows its inefficiency. The SGPC will install CCTV cameras on the entire stretch of Heritage Street that leads to the Golden Temple,’’ he said.

    Dhami said that it was a deep-rooted conspiracy, apparently politically influenced. He said that these incidents had created a sense of fear among the devotees but he appealed to the devotees not to panic.

    This was the third blast near the golden temple in the last four days. Earlier two low-intensity blasts have taken place both at the same spot near the Saragarhi multistory parking on Heritage Street. The first blast took place around midnight on Saturday and the second blast took place at 6.30 AM on Monday morning.

    There is no breakthrough for the police in the two blasts which took place earlier. In those blasts, the explosives were packed in two 250 ml cans of a health drink called `Hell’.

    The National Security Guard (NSG) and National Investigation Agency (NIA) teams had visited the spot on Heritage Street where the earlier two blasts took place. Both NSG and NIA officials had held meetings with the officers of the Punjab Police to have first-hand knowledge of the incident and they were focusingwhat could be the motive behind the blast and were studying the explosive material forensically as well as to analyze the site of the explosions for more clues.

    The team from the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) has collected the evidence and was examining the material collected.

    CHANDIGARH: A third low-intensity blast occurred near Golden Temple in Amritsar late last night. Meanwhile, the Punjab Police has arrested five alleged suspects including a newly-wed couple, and solved all three blast cases.

    Sources said that this blast took place around 12.30 PM on the intervening night of Wednesday and Thursday at the Galliara area (pathway around the Golden Temple) near Guru Ram Das Inn (Sarai) in the vicinity of the Golden Temple. In the CCTV footage, one could see that the suspect allegedly threw the bomb from the window of a washroom on the second floor of the Inn into Galiara.

    Among the accused who have been arrested included a newly-wed couple who were staying in room number 225 of the Inn and two bags and also some torn papers were recovered from them by the police.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });

    In a few minutes, the local police reached the spot and also the forensic teams were called and the area was cordoned off. It took the police about half an hour to locate the exact spot where this explosion took place.

    Shiromani Gurdwara Parbhandak Committee (SGPC) President Harjinder Singh Dhami that the SGPC staffers including Tajinder Singh who were on duty rushed to the spot after today’s blast that appeared on one of the cameras. As they reached the spot, the accused had already left. “Our staffer came back to the CCTV room and rolled back the particular footage only to zero in on one of the suspected accused.

    Since the whole area in and around the holy shrine is covered with CCTV cameras, the suspect was traced and caught by our staffers. By that time, the policemen too had reached the spot and he was arrested. Later the other suspects were arrested,’’ he said.

    Dhami announced enhancing vigil and setting up CCTV cameras in and around the Golden Temple as he termed that the policing was inefficient. “In the span of six days, three explosions took place in close proximity to each and the police remained clueless. This shows its inefficiency. The SGPC will install CCTV cameras on the entire stretch of Heritage Street that leads to the Golden Temple,’’ he said.

    Dhami said that it was a deep-rooted conspiracy, apparently politically influenced. He said that these incidents had created a sense of fear among the devotees but he appealed to the devotees not to panic.

    This was the third blast near the golden temple in the last four days. Earlier two low-intensity blasts have taken place both at the same spot near the Saragarhi multistory parking on Heritage Street. The first blast took place around midnight on Saturday and the second blast took place at 6.30 AM on Monday morning.

    There is no breakthrough for the police in the two blasts which took place earlier. In those blasts, the explosives were packed in two 250 ml cans of a health drink called `Hell’.

    The National Security Guard (NSG) and National Investigation Agency (NIA) teams had visited the spot on Heritage Street where the earlier two blasts took place. Both NSG and NIA officials had held meetings with the officers of the Punjab Police to have first-hand knowledge of the incident and they were focusing
    what could be the motive behind the blast and were studying the explosive material forensically as well as to analyze the site of the explosions for more clues.

    The team from the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) has collected the evidence and was examining the material collected.

  • Amritsar: People injured after suspected explosion near Golden Temple

    Express News Service

    CHANDIGARH: About half a dozen people sustained injuries after a suspected explosion that took place near the Golden Temple late on Saturday night.

    Sources said that a blast took place around midnight near a parking lot in front of Saragarhi Sarai at Heritage Street in the vicinity of the Golden Temple as the tourists and locals were strolling on the street.

    Due to the impacts of the explosion the windowpanes of a nearby restaurant and Saragarhi Sarai were shattered and no damage was caused to the buildings. Thus a few pedestrians on the busy Heritage Street got injured.

    The locals said that there were six girls on an auto rickshaw who received minor injuries due to the window panes and a person lying on a nearby bench got injured.

    The people got scared as they thought that it was a terror attack and panic gripped the area. But, the police said there is no need to panic as the situation was under control and appealed to the people to maintain peace.

    Sources said that the blast might have occurred in the chimney of a restaurant in the area but further investigations are underway to know the exact cause of the explosion. The forensic teams were investigating the exact reason behind the blast as they recovered some kind of powder where the window panes were broken.

    Meanwhile, Commissioner of Police Amritsar tweeted,“ A news related to blast #Amritsar is going viral on social media, the situation is under control investigation is on to establish the facts of the incident and there is no need to panic. I urge citizens to maintain peace and harmony, and advise all to fact checkbefore sharing.’’

    CHANDIGARH: About half a dozen people sustained injuries after a suspected explosion that took place near the Golden Temple late on Saturday night.

    Sources said that a blast took place around midnight near a parking lot in front of Saragarhi Sarai at Heritage Street in the vicinity of the Golden Temple as the tourists and locals were strolling on the street.

    Due to the impacts of the explosion the windowpanes of a nearby restaurant and Saragarhi Sarai were shattered and no damage was caused to the buildings. Thus a few pedestrians on the busy Heritage Street got injured.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });

    The locals said that there were six girls on an auto rickshaw who received minor injuries due to the window panes and a person lying on a nearby bench got injured.

    The people got scared as they thought that it was a terror attack and panic gripped the area. But, the police said there is no need to panic as the situation was under control and appealed to the people to maintain peace.

    Sources said that the blast might have occurred in the chimney of a restaurant in the area but further investigations are underway to know the exact cause of the explosion. The forensic teams were investigating the exact reason behind the blast as they recovered some kind of powder where the window panes were broken.

    Meanwhile, Commissioner of Police Amritsar tweeted,“ A news related to blast #Amritsar is going viral on social media, the situation is under control investigation is on to establish the facts of the incident and there is no need to panic. I urge citizens to maintain peace and harmony, and advise all to fact check
    before sharing.’’

  • Pro-Khalistan slogans raised at Golden Temple on 38th anniversary of Operation Bluestar 

    By PTI

    AMRITSAR: Pro-Khalistan slogans were raised by supporters of radical Sikh outfits as well as that of Shiromani Akali Dal (Amritsar) at the Golden Temple on the 38th anniversary of Operation Bluestar.

    The marbled premises of the Golden Temple near Akal Takht, the supreme temporal seat of the Sikhs, echoed with pro-Khalistan slogans.

    Many youths held banners and placards with ‘Khalistan Zindabad’ written on them.

    They wore t-shirts with the picture of slain separatist leader Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale printed on them.

    Pro-Khalistan slogans were also raised by activists of the Shiromani Akali Dal (Amritsar) outfit led by former MP Simranjit Singh Mann, who was also present at the spot.

    He raised the killing of Punjabi singer Sidhu Moosewala and demanded justice for the family.

    Operation Bluestar was a military operation carried out in 1984 to flush out the militants from the Golden Temple.

    Elaborate security arrangements were put in place in Amritsar to ensure that the event passed off smoothly.

    Jathedar of Akal Takht Gyani Harpreet Singh, in his message to the Sikh community on the occasion, said Sikh preachers and scholars need to visit the border areas to promote Sikhism and apprise the youth about the rich Sikh tenets and history.

    He also talked about the need to fight the scourge of the drug menace which has afflicted many youths.

    The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), the apex religious body of the Sikhs, displayed the bullet-ridden holy ‘Saroop’ (volume) of the Guru Granth Sahib.

    The ‘Saroop’, which was installed in the sanctum sanctorum at that time, was hit by a bullet during the military action in 1984.

  • SGPC holds ‘Akhand Path’ to express remorse at alleged sacrilege attempt at Golden Temple

    By PTI

    AMRITSAR: The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) on Sunday began an ‘Akand Path’ (uninterrupted recitation of the holy scripture) to express remorse over the alleged sacrilege attempt at the Golden Temple here.

    SGPC president Harjinder Singh was present at the start of the ‘Akhand Path’ at the Gurdwara Manji Sahib Diwan Hall.

    He said the alleged sacrilege attempt which took place on Saturday evening at the Golden Temple has caused deep mental and spiritual anguish to the entire Sikh community.

    “The governments should expose the conspiracy behind this incident. If such incidents are not stopped, then the governments would be responsible for the deteriorating environment in the state,” Singh said.

    The SGPC president also condemned the attempt to allegedly commit sacrilege at a gurdwara in Kapurthala district.

    An unidentified man was beaten to death in Kapurthala on Sunday after being accused of “disrespecting” the Sikh religious flag at a gurdwara in Nizampur village.

    Meanwhile, Punjab Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu on Sunday condemned the alleged sacrilege attempts at the Golden Temple in Amritsar and at a gurdwara in Kapurthala, saying conspiracies are being hatched to disturb peace in the state.

    He also said “deliberate and malicious acts” intended to outrage religious feelings should be dealt with deterrent punishment.

    “Punjab is built on strong foundation of Oneness & universal brotherhood laid down by Guru Sahib. No divisive forces can destroy strong social fabric of Punjabi Community. Deliberate & malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings should be dealt with deterrent punishment,” Sidhu said in a tweet.

    Earlier, addressing a public meeting in Malerkotla district, he said, “Even today, conspiracies are being hatched to disturb peace in Punjab.”

    The cricketer-turned-politician said those involved in any incident of sacrilege should be awarded the maximum punishment.

    “If any incident of sacrilege takes place — be it of the Quran Sharif, the Bhagavad Gita or the Guru Granth Sahib — the culprits should be publicly hanged, should be given the maximum punishment under the Constitution because such incidents hurt our sentiments.

    “Anyone can make a mistake, but this is not a mistake, this is a conspiracy to weaken and finish the society,” he said.

    Two unidentified men were beaten to death in Amritsar and Kapurthala after they allegedly attempted to commit sacrilege.

  • Man accused of ‘sacrilege’ bid at Amritsar’s Golden Temple lynched by angry mob

    Express News Service

    CHANDIGARH: A man was lynched by an angry mob on Saturday evening after an alleged sacrilege attempt at the Golden Temple in Amritsar, said the police.

    Sources said that a man jumped over the railing inside the sanctum sanctorum of the Golden Temple during the daily Rehras Path (routine evening  prayer) and tried to touch the sword kept in front of the placed feet over Rumala Sahib on the Guru Granth Sahib (holy book of the sikhs). The police said the  man was clean shaven and had tied a pathka (yellow clotht) around his head.

    He was nabbed by the on-duty Shiromani Gurdwara Parbhandak Committee (SGPC) employees.  During all this, the priest continued with the recitation of the ‘path’.

    Sources said that the alleged accused was taken into room inside the Golden Temple premises by the employees of the SGPC where he was beaten up during interrogation and then taken on a wheel chair to the SGPC headquarters.

    As one of the TV channels does a live telecast of the evening prayers from the Golden Temple, the vlips of the incident immediately went viral on social media. Soon, the public, including Nihangs (sikh warriors)  rushed to the Golden Temple.

    I strongly condemn this attempt of sacrilege inside of Darbar Sahib, Amritsar today evening.The person has been caught, but it is alarming how such an incident can take place inside the premises of Darbar Sahib.#darbarsahib #goldentemple #amritsar pic.twitter.com/BoD4lo5d6S
    — Avtar Singh Hit (@avtarsinghhit) December 18, 2021
    Later, more videos were shared showing the body of the alleged accused lying on the floor in the Golden Temple complex.

    Demanding a detailed investigation, SGPC President Harjinder Singh Dhami said, “the person was killed by angry devotees as it appeares to be a deep rooted conspiracy to vitiate the atmosphere and bring disgrace to the Sikh faith.”

    According to sources, this is second such incident, in the last two days, at the Golden Temple. Earlier, an SGPC employees handed over a man named Ranbir Singh for allegedly throwing handbook of Gurbani (gutka) into the sarovar (holy tank) of the Golden Temple.

    Amritsar Police Commissioner Sukhchain Singh Gill said “preliminary investigations revealed that the accused had attempted to commit blasphemy and the public beat him to death.”

    When the police team reached the spot he was already dead. The dead body has been taken into police custody and taken to Civil Hospital for post mortem. “The police is recording the statements of the eyewitnesses and SGPC employees appropriate action would be taken,” he said.

    SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal said that it is impossible to believe that this could be the act of just one person. “There clearly is a deep rooted conspiracy behind it. Ever since the Mughals, the Masands and the Operation Bluestar, rhe sanctity of the Golden Temple has been made a target.

    Amritsar, Punjab | Today, one 24-25-year-old man barged inside (Golden Temple) where the holy book (Guru Granth Sahib) is kept. He tried desecrating it with a sword; was taken out by Sangat people; died in the altercation. Body sent to Civil Hospital: DCP Rampal Singh pic.twitter.com/4pq79BJZXB
    — ANI (@ANI) December 18, 2021
    “This is beyond belief.” Badal said that Saturday’s development has left the entire Sikh quom in a state of shock.

    The former Deputy CM said that there seems to be a “conspiracy to inflict wounds of Sikh minds and to disturb peace and communal harmony in the state.”

    Badal came down heavily against the state government saying that there were strong indications of such a conspiracy being weaved. “What are the intelligence agencies doing?” asked Badal.

    Five-time Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal said the crime was too reprehensible for words and it has caused deep anguish and outrage in the minds of the Sikh masses all over the world. He said that the whole conspiracy needs to be probed, exposed and those behind it be given exemplary punishment.

  • Golden Temple: Sewadar pulled into dough-making machine, dies

    By PTI

    AMRITSAR: In a freak incident, an SGPC sawadar died after being pulled into a in a dough-making machine at a community kitchen in the Golden Temple here on Tuesday.

    The incident occurred when Bhai Balraj Singh was working in the community kitchen, according to an SGPC official.

    His hand got stuck in the machine, which pulled him in, crushing him to death.

    Officials said he died on the spot.

    Immediately after the incident, the entire area was sealed.

    For a few hours, the ‘langar’ service was affected.

    SGPC president Jagir Kaur expressed grief over the incident.

    “The tragic death of Bhai Balraj Singh has come as a great shock to the SGPC family,” she said, adding that the sewadar’s family will be supported by the SGPC.