Sukhbir Badal stable after Nanded gurdwara attack
Shiromani Akali Dal chief Sukhbir Singh Badal, who was injured in a ‘kirpan’ attack inside a gurdwara, underwent surgery that lasted for about 90 minutes and is now stable, doctors treating him said on Friday.
The former Punjab deputy chief minister will be discharged today and is likely to be flown to Punjab in the afternoon, an official said.
Badal was attacked by a member of the Nihang order inside the Gurdwara Mata Sahib Devan Ji Mugat on the outskirts of Maharashtra’s Nanded town on Thursday, according to the police.
Visuals showed Badal, who escaped an attempt on his life at the Golden Temple entrance in December 2024, walking inside a hospital building with a cloth wrapped around his right hand.
He was rushed to the Yashosai Hospital here, where doctors operated on him, said officials.
“The surgery lasted for an hour and a half. There was a tendon injury, and he had a sharp penetrating wound. His tendon was repaired. The plastic surgeon also repaired his ulnar artery nerve. He is out of danger,” said a doctor from the hospital.
The SAD chief will be discharged today, he said.
An official from the police department said that Badal will likely be taken to Punjab by air in the afternoon.
According to police, they have yet to find out why the accused, Jaspal Singh, attacked Badal.
Singh, who holds commerce and law degrees and is based in Pune with his family, had been working as a sewadar or volunteer at the gurdwara for the past two years. The accused, aged 60-62 years, was staying alone in Nanded.
He has been booked under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for attempt to murder, voluntarily causing hurt by dangerous weapons or means, and voluntarily causing grievous hurt to a public servant to deter them from performing their duty.
