Shiromani Akali Dal president and former Punjab deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal was reportedly attacked by a Nihang at Gurdwara Mata Sahib Kaur on the outskirts of Nanded, Maharashtra, on Thursday. Badal sustained an injury to his hand and was rushed to a nearby hospital for treatment.
The incident took place around 15 km from the main Gurdwara Nanded Sahib, one of the five Takhts, or temporal seats, of Sikhism. Badal was reportedly heading towards the langar hall after paying obeisance at the gurdwara when he was attacked with a kirpan.
The gurdwara is controlled by a Nihang samparday and is not managed by the board that oversees the main Nanded Sahib gurdwara. Following the attack, Badal was shifted to the nearby Yashosai Hospital.
A viral video following the incident showed Badal walking inside a building with a saffron-coloured cloth wrapped around his right hand.
Badal had arrived in Nanded on Wednesday with his family and a group of close associates as part of a three-day visit. He was inside the gurdwara with his wife, Harsimrat Kaur Badal, a Shiromani Akali Dal MP.
{{/usCountry}}Badal had arrived in Nanded on Wednesday with his family and a group of close associates as part of a three-day visit. He was inside the gurdwara with his wife, Harsimrat Kaur Badal, a Shiromani Akali Dal MP.
{{/usCountry}}BJP spokesperson RP Singh condemned the attack, calling the incident “completely unacceptable” and saying that violence has no place in a democratic society.
Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis has ordered an inquiry into the reported attack on Shiromani Akali Dal chief and former Punjab deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal at a gurdwara in Nanded, reported news agency PTI.
In a post on X, he wrote, "Punjab and the Punjabi community have already suffered immensely during the dark and painful years of violence and militancy. Generations of Punjabis have borne the deep scars left by that period. We cannot, under any circumstances, allow those dark days to return. Peace, brotherhood, constitutional values and the rule of law must always prevail.
I pray for the good health, safety and speedy recovery of S Sukhbir Singh Badal Ji."
2024 assassination bid
This is the second reported attack on Sukhbir Singh Badal in less than two years. On December 4, 2024, Badal survived an assassination bid when former militant Narain Singh Chaura allegedly fired at him from close range at the entrance of the Golden Temple in Amritsar.
The bullet narrowly missed Badal after a security officer intervened and grabbed the pistol, causing the shot to hit the shrine wall. No one was injured in the incident, and Chaura was overpowered and arrested.