Respect all places of worship, appeals Punjab CM Channi during visit to Golden Temple

Punjab CM Charanjit Singh Channi has appealed to the people of the state to respect and protect the places of worship of all religions. The Chief Minister made the appeal during a visit to the Golden Temple a day after a man accused of ‘sacrilege’ was lynched on the premises on Saturday.

During his interaction with the media, CM Channi said, “We appeal to the people of the state to respect and protect the religious centers of all religions, maintain communal harmony.”

“It might be that some bad elements are causing this as Assembly elections are nearing. Our agencies are conducting a probe,” he added.

#WATCH Punjab CM Charanjit Singh Channi visits Golden Temple in Amritsar

Punjab government has constituted SIT to probe sacrilege attempt at the Golden Temple pic.twitter.com/gMXmBNPPFY

– ANI (@ANI) December 19, 2021

Following his visit to the Golden Temple, Punjab CM Charanjit Singh Channi is expected to meet senior police and local administration officials in Amritsar.

The Punjab Police has set up a special investigation team (SIT) to probe the alleged ‘sacrilege’ and subsequent lynching at the Golden Temple.

Deputy CM Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, who held a meeting with senior police officials in Amritsar on Sunday, said a report is expected from the SIT in two days.

READ: Case filed in sacrilege bid at Golden Temple, CM Channi orders probe | All that happened

A video of the incident shared by former Shiromani Akali Dal and now BJP leader Manjinder Singh Sirsa on Twitter shows a man in his 20s jumping the railing and running towards a sword kept inside the Harmandir Sahib Gurdwara at Golden Temple. This is when the man was apprehended

Meanwhile, another man was lynched in Punjab’s Kapurthala on Sunday. Police officials claim the man was trying to ‘steal’ the Nishan Sahib – a religious flag – from atop a gurdwara when he was caught and thrashed by locals.