Guru Granth Sahib desecration: Badal suspends senior police officer for ‘lapse of duty’

Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal on Friday ordered the suspension of Moga Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Charanjit Sharma for alleged lapses in duty.

“The suspension has been ordered following a recommendation of the special investigation team formed after sacrilege of Guru Granth Sahib in Faridkot district a few days ago,” a Punjab government spokesman said here.

“The SIT, headed by Additional Director General of Police I.P.S. Sahota, Director of Bureau of Investigations, went into the entire sequence of events following the disappearance of Guru Granth Sahib from Faridkot,” the spokesman said.

Sharma was the Faridkot SSP when the holy book was stolen from a gurdwara there.

Sikh organisations had protested the desecration of the holy book. The protests led to clashes with the police and violence in some parts of south-west Punjab this week.

At least two people were killed and nearly 80 injured in bloody clashes between police and Sikhs protesting against the desecration of the holy book, near Kotkapura town in Punjab’s Faridkot district, 230 km from here.

Police used teargas, lathicharge and fired in the air to disperse a dharna by Sikhs at Kotakpura chowk in Faridkot early Wednesday. Later in the day, police fired to disperse protesters in village Behbal Kalan, killing two men, Bittu Singh and Krishan Singh, reports The Indian Express. A third man was admitted to hospital with bullet wounds.