Teen booked for sacrilege in Amritsar

Amritsar, October 3

The police have booked a teenage boy, who was held by people for alleged sacrilege in a local gurdwara on the Majitha road here on Sunday.

A case under Sections 295 and 380 of the Indian Penal Code has been registered against him. Following a preliminary probe, he was identified as a resident of Indira Colony on Majitha road. His family members said the accused was “mentally unsound” since years and was undergoing treatment at Dr Vidya Sagar Institute of Mental Health.

SHO Mohit Kumar said the victim’s family had produced the medial record of the accused before the police. They said he had slipped away from the house without the knowledge of the family and while they were looking for him, they came to know about the incident.

“We have sent him for medical examination to ascertain the condition of his mental health,” he said while adding that the accused was a minor.

The suspect was held by a sewadar of the shrine and people of the area. He was tied to a pillar using a rope and allegedly beaten up. The entire incident was capture in CCTVs.

As per details, the accused had entered the shrine when there was no one in the complex. He first stole some money from the golak (donation box) and then picked up shashtrs (traditional weapons) kept before the Guru Granth Sahib and tried to flee the spot. However, the sewadars followed him and caught him. The accused was tied with a pillar but he did not speak anything though he was allegedly thrashed by them. He appeared to be mentally challenged.