Punjab Police booked an 11-year-old girl for sacrilege after a few pages of Guru Granth Sahib were torn while she was cleaning it.
A resident of Rampura village in Sangrur district, the girl had been visiting the local Gurudwara for the past one month. She would clean the Gurdwara premises each day after prayers. It was late on Saturday evening that Gurudwara authorities noticed that the edges of seven pages of the Guru Granth Sahib were torn. The police were immediately informed.
Senior investigators revealed that the CCTV footage showed the girl trying to adjust the 'Rumala' (cloth cover) over the sacred book and the pages were damaged in the attempt. Following a complaint by Gurudwara authorities, the minor was booked under Section 295A (deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings).
“From the CCTV footage, it seems that she was adjusting the 'Rumala' over Guru Granth Sahib, but unintentionally damaged seven pages. It's a sensitive matter and we are investigating it,” said Sangrur Superintendent of Police Sharanjit Singh.
The girl's family, which claims to have already been subjected to social boycott in the village, has requested the Gurudwara authorities to pardon the girl.
“Our child is innocent. She has deep faith in Guru Granth Sahib and would go to Gurudwara every day and clean it as service of God. It was unintentional, and she should not be thrown to the cops. We are very scared and don't want to talk about it as it may further enrage them and increase our troubles,” said one of the uncles of the girl.
Meanwhile, several child right activists have appealed to state DGP Dinkar Gupta, demanding withdrawal of the complaint against the minor girl.
