Chandigarh, 14 July (H.S.): A man accused in a sacrilege case was brutally murdered with sharp-edged weapons in Punjab’s Fatehgarh Sahib district late last night. The deceased has been identified as Mewa Singh.

According to preliminary investigation, Mewa Singh was an accused in a six-year-old sacrilege case linked to a Gurudwara at Ladpur Turan village near Mandi Gobindgarh. He had been released from jail on bail and the trial in the case was still underway.

In her statement to the police, the deceased’s daughter said her father had stepped out of his room to use the washroom when the family heard him screaming. When they came out, they saw some people attacking him. She said the attackers also assaulted the family members when they tried to save him. After neighbours gathered on hearing the noise, the assailants fled from the spot.

The daughter also claimed that the family had no enmity with anyone in the village.

Police said a case had been registered against Mewa Singh in October 2020 at Mandi Gobindgarh police station after he was accused of committing sacrilege of Sri Guru Granth Sahib at a Gurdwara in Turan village. He had been arrested in the case and remained in jail for nearly a year before being granted bail.

DSP Bikramjit Singh Ghuman said Mewa Singh was killed in a very brutal manner and had multiple injuries caused by sharp-edged weapons. Police are questioning the family members and local residents. All angles are being investigated and efforts are underway to identify and arrest the attackers at the earliest.

Hindusthan Samachar / GURSHARAN SINGH