Gutka Sahib ‘sacrilege’: 3 juveniles apprehended, 2 adults held; police say probe into who gave pages

The SHO said, “CCTV cameras installed in nearby locations were scanned and three juveniles were apprehended from Bangla Basti. All three children do not go to school and work with their families as scrap collectors.”

“It is a matter of the probe who handed over the holy pages to the children,” the SHO said, adding that, “matter was still under investigation”.

The arrested woman and man are the mother and grandfather of the two among the apprehended juvenile boys, police said. The apprehended boys, aged between 9 to 14, and their families work as scrap dealers and waste collectors, they said.

Hardeep said, “Their families have been living in Khanna for many years now and they work as scrap dealers. It is a matter of investigation how these children got access to Gutka Sahib and if it was a planned conspiracy to create disharmony. Their kin have been arrested as they were not cooperating with police when the children were identified in the CCTVs. It is also being probed if their mother and grandfather had any other role in the incident.”

The FIR has been registered in the case under the BNS Sections 299 (deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage the religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs) at Khanna City-2 police station.

All five were produced in a local court on Monday. While the juveniles were sent to observation home, the two adults were sent in a two-day police remand for questioning.