Badal flies to Delhi after hospital discharge
SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal was attacked with a kirpan inside a gurdwara in Maharashtra’s Nanded district on Thursday, suffering a sharp penetrating wound that required surgery. Badal was visiting Gurdwara Mata Sahib Devan Ji Mugat with his wife, Akali Dal MP Harsimrat Kaur Badal, when the accused, identified as 60–62-year-old Jaspal Singh, approached him and attempted to strike him.
Security personnel intervened immediately and detained Singh at the spot. Badal was taken to Yashosai Hospital in Nanded, where he underwent around 90 minutes of surgery to repair a tendon and his ulnar artery nerve. Doctors said he was out of danger and his injury was not life-threatening.
Badal was discharged from the hospital around 1.30 pm on Friday and flew to Delhi. Prime Minister Narendra Modi also spoke to Harsimrat Kaur Badal to enquire about his health.
Police said Singh, who holds commerce and law degrees, had been working as a sewadar at the gurdwara for around two years. He has been booked under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for attempt to murder, voluntarily causing hurt with dangerous weapons and causing grievous hurt to a public servant. Police are investigating his motive and whether there was any larger conspiracy.
The Shiromani Akali Dal condemned the attack and demanded a thorough investigation. This was the second attack on Badal in recent months. In December 2024, he survived an assassination attempt outside the Golden Temple in Amritsar when former militant Narain Singh Chaura fired at him at close range.
