Amritsar: Man beaten to death over 'sacrilege' attempt at Golden Temple

A youth hailing from Uttar Pradesh was beaten to death after he allegedly attempted to commit sacrilege inside the sanctum sanctorum of the Golden Temple in Amritsar on Saturday evening.The incident took place when the man jumped golden grills inside the sanctum sanctorum, picked a sword and reached near the place where a Sikh priest was reciting the holy Guru Granth Sahib.The man was caught by the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee task force members. When he was being taken to the SGPC office, the angry crowd thrashed him that later led to his death.Deputy commissioner police (DCP) Parminder Singh Bhandal confirmed that the youth was beaten to death. Singh told journalisrts that the youth, believed to be between 20 to 25 years, was wearing a yellow patka."This evening during prayers, a man jumped the fence and entered the enclosed area. The congregation was offering prayers and bowing down," Parminder Singh Bhandal, the Deputy Commissioner of Police of Amritsar, said."The man, about 20 to 25 years of age who had a yellow cloth tied on his head jumped the fence. The people inside held him and escorted him out to the corridor where there was a violent altercation and he died," he said.All CCTV cameras were being checked to know when he entered the Golden Temple and how many people were with him.After the incident, a large number of Sikh devotees and various Sikh outfits slammed the SGPC for its laxity.A heavy police force has been deployed around the SGPC complex at Teja Singh Samundri Hall in order to maintain law and order.The DCP said his body was sent to the mortuary house and an autopsy would be conducted on Sunday.With inputs from PTI