AMRITSAR, India – A gunman was arrested on Dec 4 after attempting to shoot Mr. Sukhbir Singh Badal, president of a prominent Sikh political party, at the Golden Temple, the holiest shrine in Sikhism, located in Amritsar.
The assailant, posing as a visitor, drew a weapon inside the temple and fired a single shot, which missed Mr. Badal and struck a marble pillar. Mr. Badal’s security team subdued the attacker before he could fire again.
“Security for Mr. Badal has been tightened. The suspect is in custody, and investigations are underway,” said senior Punjab police officer Harpal Singh.
Mr. Badal, 62, was at the temple as part of a religious penance ordered by Sikh leaders for alleged missteps during his tenure as Punjab’s chief minister, from 2007 to 2017. The penance required him to sit at the temple entrance holding a spear.
The Golden Temple has a history of being at the center of violence. In 1984, Indian special forces stormed the temple to flush out militants demanding an independent Sikh homeland, resulting in the deaths of hundreds, including civilians. The operation provoked outrage among Sikhs and led to the assassination of then-Prime Minister Indira Gandhi by her Sikh bodyguards, triggering violent reprisals across India that left thousands of Sikhs dead.
This latest incident has reignited concerns about security at the revered site. Authorities are continuing to investigate the motives behind the attack.