Accused’s uncle among two booked

MORINDA: A day after the sacrilege incident at the historical Gurdwara Kotwali Sahib in Morinda, the police have booked the president of the internal management committee and one other person in a separate case. The duo has been identified as Parmatma Singh, who is head of the management committee and uncle of the sacrilege accused Jasvir Singh, and one Jassa Singh, who does ‘kar sewa (voluntary service) in the gurdwara. According to the FIR, in an

THE ACCUSED JASVIR WAS PRODUCED IN A LOCAL COURT ON TUESDAY AND SENT TO TWO-DAY POLICE REMAND

attempt to save his nephew, Jasvir, Parmatma asked Jassa Singh to upload a video in which they claimed that no sacrilege happened. The copy of the FIR is with HT. HT couldn’t independently verify the contents of the video. The duo was booked under Section 153 (provocation with intent to cause riot) and 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). Morinda City police station SHO inspector Gursewak Singh said, “The motive behind sacrilege is not clear yet. The matter is under investigation.” A court on Tuesday sent the accused Jasvir to two-day police remand even as markets remained shut in the town over the incident. Jasvir was arrested on Monday on charges of hurting religious sentiments and attempt to murder. Director General of Punjab Police Gaurav Yadav in Chandigarh said police are investigating the matter. “It was an unfortunate incident. If there is any conspiracy behind this incident, we will expose it and will deeply investigate it,” Yadav added. “We have taken two-day remand of the accused and will question him regarding the incident,” the SHO said. The protesters ended their stir late in the evening on Tuesday after the police registered an FIR against the accused’s uncle. Earlier, tension prevailed and shops remained shut, and police personnel were deployed in Morinda town as a group of people continued their protest against the sacrilege incident.