Announcing the latest development on the investigation into the disappearance of 328 saroops (sacred copies) of Guru Granth Sahib, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann said on Wednesday that the special investigation team (SIT) has recovered 169 ‘saroops’ from two deras in the Banga region of Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar (formerly Nawanshahr) district.
Addressing a gathering at the Aam Aadmi Party’s Maghi Mela conference in Muktsar, the chief minister vowed strict action and said that of the 169 recovered saroops, 139 were found to have no official record or serial numbers, raising questions about unauthorised distribution and mismanagement.
“The sanctity of Guru Granth Sahib is paramount. Our government is committed to tracing every single missing saroop,” Mann said, adding that further details would be shared by the SIT shortly. Of the 169, 115 saroops were numbered, and the remaining 54 had no serial numbers. Records exist for 30 saroops, 20 were given to one pind gurdwara and 10 to another in Banga, according to AAP state media incharge Baltej Pannu.
The case dates back to May 2020 when an internal audit at the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) publication house at Gurdwara Ramsar Sahib in Amritsar revealed a discrepancy of 328 saroops. While the Akal Takht had initially conducted an inquiry and awarded religious punishment (tankhah) to several officials, no criminal proceedings followed.
While the SGPC initially termed the state’s intervention “unwarranted”, the Akal Takht Jathedar recently directed the committee to cooperate with the SIT in the larger interest of the Sikh sangat. The recent recovery in Banga marks the first physical evidence of the missing scriptures being found outside official SGPC custody.
Also read: Missing 'saroops' case: Akal Takht asks SGPC to cooperate
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