The Shiromani Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC) has honoured the parents of Nirmaljit Singh Saini, who shot 5 bullets at the woman for allegedly consuming alcohol in Gurdwara Dukhniwaran Sahib, premises near the Sarovar with a “siropa” – a robe of honour – at their residence in Patiala.
A member of SGPC, Jaskaran Singh tweeted, “Parents of Nirmaljit Singh Saini, honored with siropa (rob of honor) by Giani Pritpal Singh, head granthi Gurdwara Dukhnivaran Sahib, Patiala, accompanied by SGPC members Jarnail Singh Kartarpur and Satwinder Singh Tohra.”
Parents of Nirmaljit Singh Saini, honoured with Siropa (robe of honour) by Giani Pritpal Singh, head granthi of Gurdwara Dukhniwaran Sahib, Patiala, accompanied by @SGPCAmritsar members Jarnail Singh Kartarpur & Satwinder Singh Tohra. pic.twitter.com/e3kvw4RobS
— Jaskaran Singh (@JKSinghCH) May 15, 2023
Earlier, members of various Sikh organisation reached the court complex where Nirmaljit Singh Saini was produced by police after his arrest.
He was greeted by showering flower petals when escorted out by police after being remanded to judicial custody.
Talking about the incident, SGPC president Harjinder Singh Dhami said, “Anti-Sikh forces are targeting gurdwaras with a deliberate conspiracy and the government was a silent spectator. The act of drinking inside the gurdwara was a conspiracy.”
The deceased woman was identified as Parvinder Kaur. Apart from the murder of the woman, a sewadar has also been injured during the firing.
Talking with the media, the Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Patila, Varun Sharma said, the incident took place around 9:30 pm on May 14. Accused Nirmaljit Singh Saini was arrested from the spot and a licensed revolver was recovered from him, he said, adding that Kaur aged between 45 and 50, arrived in Patiala from Zirakpur on May 14.
SSP Sharma also said that the woman was undergoing treatment at a de-addiction centre in Patiala for alcohol addiction.
Kaur was sitting near the Sarovar inside the gurdwara and consuming alcohol when devotees objected and took her to the room of the gurdwara manager, said Sharma.
“Nirmaljit Singh, who was among the onlookers watching the commotion, got enraged at Parvinder’s behaviour, took out his licensed revolver and fired five bullets, of which three to four hit Parvinder,” he added.
It was a 32-bore licenced revolver, an official statement said.
As per DSP Jaswinder Tiwana, the accused is a regular cricketer and into property dealings as well. However, they can’t confirm his motivations behind the murder yet.
Speaking about the de-addiction centre, Varun Sharma said, the woman was “suffering from depression”. The crime took place in the heat of the moment and since the accused did not know the victim at all, the police have no reason to suspect personal enmity between the two, said Sharma.
Giani Parnam Singh, head granthi of Gurdwara Dukhniwaran Sahib, told reporters Monday that when she was confronted by devotees near the Sarovar, Kaur smashed the liquor bottle in her possession and tried to use it as a weapon against a gurdwara employee. One of the gurdwara employees was also injured in the scuffle that ensued, he added.
He also said that when she was questioned in the manager’s room, the woman said she was working as a security guard in Panchkula and that somebody had planted the bottle of alcohol in her bag. He further claimed that when gurdwara employees checked her bag, they found some medicines and what seemed like small amounts of drugs in little packets.
