Kapurthala Gurudwara Lynching- Police arrest caretaker of the Gurudwara

New Delhi, December 25

The Punjab police arrested the caretaker of the Gurudwara in Kapurthala for murder after a youth was lynched in the shrine following allegations that he committed sacrilege. The Kapurthala police had found no evidence of sacrilege.

It has come to the fore that the lynched youth just wanted to eat food at the Gurudwara.

The Kapurthala police arrested Amarjit Singh, the caretaker of the gurdwara, for murder.

This comes a day after Punjab CM Charanjit Singh Channi announced that there was no sacrilege committed in Kapurthala Gurudwara and those involved would be booked for murder.

Channi told media, “No evidence has been found about sacrilege at the gurdwara in Nizampur village of Kapurthala district. The young man who was killed had not committed any sacrilege. The first information report (FIR) will be amended and a case of murder will be registered ,” 

The police added that although it is yet to be probed what was the youth's motive to enter the Gurudwara, it is being suspected that he wanted to commit theft.

The Kapurthala police stated that right from the preliminary probe to further investigation it had come to the fore that no attempt of sacrilege and disrespecting of the Nishan Sahib (a Sikh flag) at the gurdwara.

The youth yet unidentified was lynched on the suspicion of disrespecting the Nishan Sahib, the Sikh flag, at the gurdwara.
The police added that victim had multiple stab wounds. The police are now waiting for the Viscera report and DNA test.

Amarjit Singh who is now in police custody had filed a complaint against the youth for sacrilege. The police had booked him  under Section 295-A (hurting religious sentiments) of the Indian Penal Code.

The investigation however busted his claim. Moreover, In a video that surfaced on social media, he admitted that the youth had not committed sacrilege with Guru Granth Sahib and even had food in the gurdwara. In another video, he is heard saying that the suspect was sent “by someone from New Delhi and was given money for executing the desecration”.

The police stated that Singh's claims in the video are being verified while he has been out under questioning. 

The officials added that the  body was cremated after the post-mortem when no one came to claim it even after 72 hours.