Incidents of lawlessness continued in the state of Punjab with a man being stabbed to death in the vicinity of the Golden Temple in Amritsar on late Wednesday night allegedly over the issue of smoking.
The latest attack by two Nihangs — followers of an order of Sikh warriors, characterized by blue robes, and antiquated arms — comes just about two days after the clashes were reported between the followers of the Dera Beas and Nihangs. Days before that, some of the Nihangs had also disrupted a prayer meeting organized by the Christians in Amritsar region.
The shocking incident of a brutal murder on the streets of Amritsar was caught in the CCTV camera. The two-minute clip shows two Nihang Sikhs entering into an argument with a man outside a hotel — barely a kilometre away from the Sikhs’ temporal shrine. Soon, the argument turned violent with one of the Nihang Sikhs pointing a sword at the man, who is believed to be under the influence of liquor.
They soon start beating each other up before the Nihang Sikhs swing his sword at the man. The three engage in a fight for a few minutes before the Nihang Sikhs overpower the guy and hack him to death.
Soon after the incident, the Nihang Sikhs leave the spot even as onlookers gather around the body of the man. The police have taken the body into custody and started a probe. The police said that the accused have been identified and a man was already arrested.
“A youth has been arrested after the incident, and identified as Ramandeep Singh. After the quarrel, Ramandeep also sided with the Nihang Sikhs and attacked Harmanjit. Nihangs have also been identified, soon they will also be nabbed,” said Amritsar Police Commissioner Arunpal Singh. The two Nihang Sikhs, involved in the incident, have been identified as Charanjit Singh and Tarundeep Singh.
The victim was identified as 35-year-old Harmanjit Singh of Chatiwind area. The police said that Harmanjit was going from home to the Golden Temple at night, and he was standing in front of a hotel on the way. “He was in an inebriated condition and was about to consume tobacco when two Nihang Sikhs stopped him which led to an argument,” added the police official.