Tension over snatching of holy book from Dalits

Archit Watts
Tribune News Service

Muktsar, June 13

Tension prevailed in Shivpur Kukrian village after two Balmikis were beaten up by residents of some neighbouring villages who allegedly mistook them for thieves running away with Guru Granth Sahib.

However, a Ramayana was found from their possession.

The duo, Naginder Singh and Daleep Singh of the village, were bringing the holy book on a motorcycle to perform a religious ceremony following the death of an elderly woman in the village.

A large number of people from the Balmiki community from across the state today gathered in the village and took out a protest march seeking action against the assailants.

They threatened to launch a state wide stir if the assailants were not arrested till Wednesday. A large number of policemen were deployed in the village as a precautionary measure. A case was also registered against unidentified persons in this regard at Sadar police station.

Mandar Singh, whose mother died on Thursday, said, “My nephew, Naginder, had gone to neighbouring Ranjitgarh village yesterday to get a copy of Ramayana to perform a religious ceremony. However, when they were returning, 40 persons from Lopo and Gehri villages attacked them and snatched the holy book after mistaking them as thieves running away with Guru Granth Sahib. They not just injured them but also hurt the religious sentiments of our community.”

Courtesy: The Tribune