Audi with torn pages of Quran impounded

Sushil Goyal

Tribune news Service

Sangrur, June 30

The Vishav Hindu Parishad (VHP) today claimed that Nand Kishor Goldy, its Pathankot zonal secretary, and his son Gaurav had been falsely implicated by the police in the Malerkotla sacrilege case to defame the party.

Devinder Sharma, state vice-president of the VHP, said Goldy belonged to Taragarh village in Pathankot district and had been performing voluntary service at Dera Pandori Mahanta, near Gurdaspur, for many years. He said Gaurav ran a shop in Gurdaspur.

He demanded immediate release of the father-son duo and warned the government against defaming the VHP. 

Meanwhile, to collect more evidence in a case related to the desecration of Quran in Malerkotla on June 24, the police took the alleged mastermind, Vijay Kumar, to Delhi yesterday and searched his residence at Palam Colony.

Pritpal Singh Thind, SSP, Sangrur, today said during the raid at Vijay's residence, the police found some torn pages of Quran from an Audi that had been impounded. 

A police team, led by SP (Detective) Jaskiranjit Singh Teja, today searched Vijay’s two bank lockers in Delhi, from where some documents had been seized.

The SSP said Vijay, who claimed that he was into property business, had two flats in Delhi and the police were gathering information about his sources of income.

Talking over the phone from Delhi, Teja said Vijay (46), was a bachelor and originally belonged to Jind district in Haryana. From 2008 to 2010, he stayed in the US and from 2010 to 2014, he remained in Canada. On his return to India, he first settled in Mumbai and later shifted to Delhi, he added.

SIT to probe Malerkotla clashes

The government has constituted a three-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) to investigate two cases of attacks on the residence of former chairman of Punjab Wakf Board Mohammad Izhar Alam and the police in Malerkotla on June 24 by a mob following the desecration of Quran. Pritpal Singh Thind, Sangrur SSP, said the team would be headed by Prabodh Kumar, ADGP. The other two members of the SIT were Paramraj Singh Umranangal, IGP, Patiala Zone, and Balkar Singh Sidhu, DIG, Patiala Range, he added. 

Nine accused in custody till July 5

Nine persons arrested in connection with attack on the police and on the residence of former DGP Mohammad Izhar Alam at Malerkotla on June 24 following an incident of desecration of Quran were produced in a court at Malerkotla on Thursday. The head constable said the court remanded all nine persons in police custody till July 5. Mohammad Yunus, Mohammad Moti Rehman, Mohammad Tariq Ali and Mohammad Alam Bhundi were arrested on Wednesday, while five others, namely Mohammad Tohid, Mohammad Saroz, Mohammad Suleman, Salman Khan and Mohammad Sehbaj, were arrested on Thursday.