Sacrilege Case: ‘Honeypreet Directed to Desecrate Guru Granth Sahib’

The Panjab Police has now recorded key Accused Pardeep Kaler’s confessional statement recorded under section 164 CrPc in the 2015 Guru Granth Sahib sacrilege case (First Information Report 63/2015 registered at the Bazakhana police station in Faridkot district). Kaler has named Dera Sacha Sauda (DSS) head Gurmeet Ram Rahim, already charged in the case, and the latter’s close associate Honeypreet Insan for ‘hatching a conspiracy to execute the sacrilege incident.’ Kaler, a proclaimed offender, has been on the run since 2018 and was arrested last month after photos of him attending a function related to the Ram Temple inauguration at Ayodhya with a Uttar Pradesh BJP Cabinet minister went viral in January 2024. Kaler was associated with DSS in 1987 and appointed national president of DSS’ political wing in 2019. In March or April 2015, Ram Rahim called Kaler to DSS, Sirsa for a meeting. Kaler said, ‘In the meeting, Mohinder Pal informed how upon listening to a Sikh preacher at village Burj Jawahar Singh Wala, some DSS followers broke their lockets which had pictures of the DSS chief. This enraged Honeypreet. She said, in retaliation, they should desecrate the Guru Granth Sahib. Ram Rahim directed the members in the meeting to execute Honeyreet’s instructions.' This revelation shines light on the beginning of sacrilege cases that have riled up Panjab-Sikh politics for the last nine years in which three Panjab govts. (SAD, INC & AAP) have changed, multiple panels have been set up, but administration has not made progress on the reasons for the sacrilege(s). Two others accused, Sandeep Bareta and Harsh Dhuri, are on the run. Mohinder was killed in the Nabha high-security cell.