Sukhbir Singh Badal Attack Updates: A man opened fire at former deputy chief minister of Punjab and Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) chief Sukhbir Singh Badal while he was serving his penance at the entrance of the Golden Temple in Amritsar. Mr Badal, who was sitting in a wheelchair, escaped unhurt as the bullet hit a wall.
The man, identified as Narain Singh, was overpowered by some people standing outside the temple.
Visuals from the incident spot show Mr Badal sitting at the gate of the Golden Temple with a spear in one hand and dressed in a blue ‘sewadar’ uniform. A supposedly middle-aged man slowly approaches the temple’s gate and pulls out a gun. A man standing near Mr Badal can be seen spotting the accused and holding his hand.
The shooter has been arrested and police are investigating the motive behind the shocking attack.
Here are the latest updates on the attempted attack on Sukhbir Singh Badal:
“Police will carry fair probe”: Punjab Chief Minister Baghwant Mann on Sukhbir Badal attack
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann assured that a fair probe will be carried out in the attempted attack on Sukhbir Singh Badal.
Congress MP Manish Tewari condemned the attack on Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader Sukhbir Singh Badal at Golden Temple on Wednesday and called for an investigation into the incident.
“It is extremely sad and condemnable. Sri Akal Takht Sahib is the biggest religious organisation for Sikhs and Sukhbir Singh Badal was completing his punishment but attacking him is highly condemnable. An investigation should be done and action should be taken against the responsible people,” he said.
Punjab Congress President Amarinder Singh Raja Warring blamed “100 per cent negligence” of the state government in the attempted assassination of Sukhbir Singh Badal at the Golden Temple in Amritsar.
Condemning the firing at Badal, Warring demanded for “strictest” punishment for the accused and also asked the Aam Aadmi Party-led State government to suspend the Additional Commissioner of Police.
“This should not have happened. I consider firing at Sukhbir Singh Badal, 100 per cent negligence of the government. This shows the condition of law and order situation in Punjab. Whoever fired bullets should be given the strictest punishment. I condemn this in the strongest of terms…ACP should be suspended, immediate action should be taken against him,” he told news agency ANI.
On the attempted attack on Sukhbir Singh Badal, Punjab MP Amar Singh demanded Punjab Chief Minister’s apology to Guru Granth Sahib in Amritsar.
“This is a grave mistake…The state and central governments should jointly investigate this incident,” he told NDTV.
Multiple cameras were live this morning when a man approached Akali Dal chief Sukhbir Singh Badal at the Golden Temple gate and tried to shoot him. The former Punjab Deputy Chief Minister escaped unhurt.
#WATCH | Punjab: Bullets fired at Golden Temple in Amritsar where SAD leaders, including party chief Sukhbir Singh Badal, were offering ‘seva’. The attacker, identified as Narayan Singh Chaura by the Police has been overpowered by the people and caught.
(Second camera angle) pic.twitter.com/c7NslbU3n3
– ANI (@ANI) December 4, 2024
Shrimoni Akali Dal leader Balwinder Singh Bhunder said that Sukhbir Singh Badal will continue performing ‘seva’ at the Golden Temple after the attempted attack on him.
“This is the place of Wahe Guru, He protects us. ‘Seva’ will continue. We trust the Almighty,” Balwinder Singh Bhunder said.
Congress leader Tripat Rajinder Singh Bajwa slammed the Punjab government over the attempted attack on Sukhbir Singh Badal at Golden Temple.
“This is wrong. This should have never happened…If they (Police) say that have nabbed him (attacker) after so much happened, if they knew that he is suspicious and freely roaming around then they should have taken precautions beforehand. This is condemnable…Ever since this government came to power in Punjab, there has been a law and order situation everywhere,” he said.
Former Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal was seen at the entrance of the Golden Temple in Amritsar – wearing a plaque around his neck and sitting in a wheelchair – as he serves a punishment over a sacrilege case.
Mr Badal has been sentenced by the Akal Takht to perform as a ‘sewadar’ and given clean duty in the kitchen and toilet at several gurdwaras, including the Golden Temple, for favouring Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim in the 2015 sacrilege of Guru Granth Sahib.
BJP leader Manjinder Singh Sirsa condemned the attempted attack on Sukhbir Singh Badal at Golden Temple, saying that it is “not just a security lapse” but also a “grave breach of the sanctity of religious institutions”.
Shocking and condemnable!
An attack on S. Sukhbir Singh Badal in the sacred premises of Sri Harmandir Sahib is not just a security lapse but a grave breach of the sanctity of our religious institutions. @AAPPunjab Govt has failed to ensure the safety of citizens and uphold the… pic.twitter.com/B0d1uTHs4W– Manjinder Singh Sirsa (@mssirsa) December 4, 2024
The shooter, Narain Singh, was associated with the 2004 Burail jail break case.
Jagtar Singh Hawara, who was the chief of Khalistani terrorist group Babbar Khalsa, had escaped from Burail jail in January 2004 by digging a 104-foot-long tunnel.
The shooter, Narain Singh, has been associated with the Babbar Khalsa, a Khalistani terrorist group.
The Chandigarh police has arrested Singh at least twice before.
Man fires at Sukhbir Singh Badal at Golden Temple
A man opened fire at former deputy chief minister of Punjab and Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) chief Sukhbir Singh Badal while he was serving his penance at the entrance of the Golden Temple in Amritsar. Mr Badal, who was sitting in a wheelchair, escaped unhurt as the bullet hit a wall.