Over half-dozen instances of desecration of the holy book of the Sikhs, Guru Granth Sahib, within a span of a couple of weeks in Punjab could not have been merely a coincidence. The sheer timing of these acts of sacrilege and the attempts to point an accusing finger were enough indicators that there was a concerted move to disturb peace in Punjab.

Even as the mainstream media kept its focus on the Bihar elections and the unfortunate communal incident at Dadri, Punjab went through a tense period with blockages of roads and railways, bandh calls, and clashes between the police and protesters, which culminated in the death of two young men in police firing on October 14. A cornered government ordered a judicial inquiry into the police firing, announced an unprecedented one crore rupees reward to anyone giving clues leading to the arrest of culprits responsible for sacrilege and ordered withdrawal of police cases against the protestors.

With so much happening on the ground and the TV news studios relatively underplaying the news, the social media, fuelled by supporters from abroad and the youth, went on overdrive. There were rumours that curfew was being imposed in Amritsar and some other cities, that paramilitary forces had been deployed and army kept on the alert, and that the government was planning a crackdown. There was no basis for such rumours, but many bought them in the light of past experiences such as Operation Bluestar in 1984.

Websites and Facebook and Twitter accounts maintained by radicals spewed venom and further fuelled sentiments. There were also anonymous mails and messages asking people to desist from celebrating Diwali. The appeal was to observe the ensuing Diwali as “black Diwali” – with the implicit threat that those who celebrate shall do so at their own risk.

In any situation involving religious issues, the large Sikh diaspora lends its total moral and material support, and it was not found wanting this time either; there were also protests in countries where Sikhs have substantial population.

The genesis of the spate of incidents lay in the unexpected and sudden decision by the Sikh clergy to grant pardon to the head of Dera Sacha Sauda, Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, on September 24. He was accused of imitating Guru Gobind Singh by wearing an attire associated with him and administering Amrit (nectar) to his followers. The pardon was a result of back channels efforts and an attempt by the ruling Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) to mend fences with the Dera, which has a significant following in at least 40 of the 117 Assembly constituencies in the state. SAD’s coalition partner, BJP, is also believed to have played a major role in getting the two together.

The verdict of the Sikh clergy, controlled by SAD-backed jathedars (Sikh high priests), did not go down well with the Sikh community in general; the radicals and hardliners were particularly angry.

The acts of desecration started only a few days after the verdict. There were reports that at a Gurdwara, where a copy of the holy book was found torn, a hand-written poster which ended with “Dhan Dhan Satguru Tera Hi Aasra” – a form of greeting used only by the Dera Sacha Sauda followers – was found. But the Dera chief immediately came out with a statement disassociating Dera with such acts and strongly condemned the incidents of sacrilege.

Half a dozen similar incidents were reported leading to protests and tension throughout the state. The Sikh clergy beat a hasty retreat and, in an unprecedented move, annulled its own decision.

Although a bandh call given earlier by Sikh radical groups on the issue of grant of pardon got a lukewarm response, another call after the reporting of desecrations received wide support. There were also moves to call for a Sarbat Khalsa (a traditional congregation of Sikhs) and demand for the removal of jathedars.

Even as the anger grew against the Badal-led government, the police claimed to have made breakthroughs in the cases of sacrilege solving five of the seven such instances.

Police claim to have caught eight culprits. These include two Sikh brothers who reportedly got instructions from their ‘masters’ in Australia and Dubai to indulge in these acts to spread disaffection in the state. The police claim to have their phone records to prove their case. However, the police have not yet named the ‘masters’.

Besides, it has arrested two granthis (Sikh priests) and a woman sewadar (volunteer at Gurdwara ). One of the granthis allegedly admitted that he wanted to encash the situation as he expected more devotees and more donations at the gurdwara where he was posted. The arrested woman has confessed that someone had promised to pay her one lakh rupees for the job of tearing pages of the holy book, the police claimed, but they are yet to identify who had promised her that money. It is therefore clear that there were personal motives behind such acts and the pardon granted to the Dera chief became an excuse for the accused.

However, some sections of the Sikh community – particularly the diaspora – are not convinced and are likely to continue their agitation.  A part of their resentment is also due to the concentration of power, both in the religious affairs and politics, in the hands of one family. The sudden grant of pardon to the Dera chief was possibly an arbitrary decision taken by the Punjab deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal, who is also the president of SAD as well as the state home minister!

There are now demands for the removal of the five jathedars who had announced the decision to pardon the Dera chief. These jathedars have also been summoned, in an unprecedented step, by panj pyaras (the five loved ones) of the Golden Temple; doubts have been expressed over their mandate to summons the jathedars. The appointing authority of the jathedars as well as the panj pyaras, the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), has placed the panj pyaras under suspension thus annulling their ‘directive’ to the jathedars.

It is also a fact that the Sikh clergy and the SGPC had been coming under attack for letting the Sikhs get weaned away by various deras and for not doing enough to propagate the religion. Perhaps it is time the SGPC sets its own house in order.

But before the police complete their inquiry and nail the accused, and the judicial inquiry fixes responsibility, the state government will have to calm down passions and handle the issue deftly to restore normalcy.