Singhu border lynching: Two more Nihangs 'surrender' to Punjab police; 4 booked in case

Two more Nihangs have surrendered to Sonipat police on Saturday, admitting to mutilating 35-year-old Lakhbir Singh at the Singhu border. Shockingly, the two suspects - Bhagwant Singh and Govind Singh were garlanded by the Nihangs for the mutilation, while some touched their feet as they were taken to the Kundli police station by the police. In total, 4 Nihangs have been nabbed in connection to the case. 35-year-old Punjab resident Lakhbir Singh was mutilated by a Nihang group and hung near the main stage of the farmers' protest near Singhu border.

Nihangs admit to mutilation, show no remorse

On Saturday, the Amritsar police arrested second accused Baba Narain Singh from the Devidaspura Amarkot village near Jandiala Guru in Amritsar in connection to the case. Amritsar Rural SSP stated that Narain Singh had escaped from Singhu and was cornered outside a Gurudwara in his village. A plea has been filed in the Supreme court seeking dismantling farmer protests at Delhi's borders after the mutilation.

"Lakhbir Singh's hand was chopped off by someone else before, so I mutilated his leg. Forty-five minutes later, he died. I have no regrets because he has disrespected Guru Granth Sahib," the accused admitted to the police. The vicim has been cremated amid tight security.

Demanding justice for Lakhbir Singh, his brother-in-law Sukhchen Singh said, "He was a (drug) addict. We feel someone lured him to do ‘beaadbi’ (sacrilege) of our Holy Book. He had left his home last week after taking Rs 50 from his sister (Raj Kaur). We had no idea he could be at the Singhu border with Nihangs. We feel someone has lured him to do such things for money.”

Farmers distance from mutilation

In the wake of the incident, Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM) issued a statement condemning both - the murder and the alleged sacrilege of the Guru Granth Sahib, squarely blaming a group Nihangs (Sikh martial group) for the mutilation. Similarly, BKU spokesperson Rakesh Tikait condemned the mutilation, stating that it would not hamper the protest. SKM has previously also tried to distance farmers' protest from the Nihangs, but faced stiff opposition.

Singhu border murder

On Friday morning, the body of 35-year-old Lakhbir Singh was found hanging by 'a barricade near farmers' protest site'. Visuals from the site indicated that the man was attacked with sharp weapons and one of his hands was chopped off. The body was later taken for postmortem to a nearby civil hospital by the police.

With several visuals of Nihangs claiming credit for the murder surfacing, Haryana Police initially detained two Nihangs for lynching and mutilating Lakhbir Singh. An FIR has been registered under sections 302 and 34 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). According to police, Lakhbir Singh was a Dalit Sikh labourer from Cheema Khurd village in Punjab's Tarn Taran district and was allegedly living with the Nihangs in their tent near the Singhu border.