Punjab government to hand over sacrilege case probe to CBI

Shivkartar Singh, advocate of both the brothers, said police had moved an application before the court here stating that they don't have sufficient evidence against the duo.

"As the brothers are smart and clever in dodging our questions, a polygraph and lie detector test will help us ascertain the motive behind the sacrilege incident", the plea reads.

It further said that the arrest of Jaswinder Singh and Rupinder Singh "was made in case FIR dated 12.10.2015 relating to incident of sacrilege at village Bargari in which "Angs" of Guru Granth Sahib were taken away by them and their associates from dharna site at Kotkapura from Palki Sahib which were recovered later on basis of their telephonic conversations". Mohkam demanded immediate and unconditional release of Rupinder Singh and Jaswinder Singh, brothers from Panjgrain village in Moga arrested in connection with sacrilege incident at Bargari, the first to take place in the state.

"The Punjab government wants these heinous crimes to be thoroughly probed in an atmosphere of "complete trust" between the Sikhs and the investigating authorities, and thus the Chief Minister has given his clearance to transfer all the three cases to the central agency." added Bains.

Several Sikh organisations in the state had contested the claims of the Punjab Police about having solved the case of alleged desecration in Faridkot with the arrest of two people, and also the claims about the alleged "foreign hand" behind the incidents.

In all, police arrested six people in connection with five such incidents.

Confirming the development, Harcharn Bains, advisor to Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal, told ANI: "After police said that they no more required the accused for interrogation, the released them".

Sikhs owing allegiance to various groups, including hardliners, had also sought the arrest of the "real culprits", alleging that the two brothers were "falsely implicated" by the police.