Author: ANI
Publication: Yahoo News
Date: September 14, 2011
URL: http://in.news.yahoo.com/sikhs-moradabad-furious-over-torching-guru-granth-sahib-123237645.html
Sikhs staged protests in Moradabad, Uttar
Pradesh, over the torching of the Guru Granth Sahib by four unidentified men
in a village.
Speaking to mediapersons, Sardar Manjeet Bagga,
a protestor said that four unidentified men had torched their holy book on
Monday, thereby insulting their religious beliefs.
"Near Pilibhit, on (sic.) road, a village
falls almost 13 kilometres away where four men knocked down the wall of the
Gurudwara, then torched our 'Guru Granth Sahib' (the holy book of Sikhs) and
after that they insulted it," said Sardar Manjeet Bagga, a protestor.
The protestors were seen holding swords in
their hands and shouting Sikh slogans of 'Jo Bole So Nihaal' (whoever utters
the phrase, shall be fulfilled) and 'Sat Sri Akal' (Eternal is the Great Timeless
Lord), venting their ire over the incident.
The protest caused a jam on the Delhi-Lucknow
highway, causing inconvenience to the commuters.
The protestors demanded the government to
immediately investigate the matter and take strict action against the guilty.
"We demand justice. Those who have insulted
Guru Granth Sahib should be hanged; we want justice from the government. We
want to know that who has insulted our religion and why he has insulted it,
we want to know the reason, we want justice," said Jasmeet Kaur, another
protestor.
Guru Granth Sahib is the religious text of
Sikhism, a collection of 'shabad' or 'baani' (hymns), which contains religious
teachings and deemed as the Sikh community's spiritual guide.
