The North News
Chandigarh, July 15
Punjab Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema on Tuesday raised alarm over the mysterious disappearance of the “action taken” portion of the Justice Gurnam Singh Commission Report, which probed the 1986 Nakodar police firing and sacrilege incidents. Speaking in the Punjab Vidhan Sabha , Cheema urged Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan to constitute a committee to trace the missing part of the report. The Speaker has agreed and announced the formation of a special committee for the purpose.
The Finance Minister made the revelation during the debate on the Punjab Prevention of Crime Against Religious Scriptures Bill, 2025, drawing a direct link between the proposed legislation and past failures in ensuring accountability in cases of religious desecration. Cheema recalled that on February 2, 1986, five sacred Birs of the Guru Granth Sahib were set on fire at Gurdwara Sahib Guru Arjan Dev Ji in Nakodar. Just two days later, four Sikh youths—Ravinder Singh Littran, Baldhir Singh Ramgarh, Jhirmal Singh Gursiana, and Harminder Singh—were fatally shot while staging a peaceful protest. He compared their deaths to the 2015 Bargari protests, both marked by allegations of police excess.
At the time, the state was under the rule of the Shiromani Akali Dal, with Surjit Singh Barnala as Chief Minister. Captain Kanwaljit Singh served as the Home Minister, and Sukhjinder Singh Khaira—father of present-day Congress MLA Sukhpal Singh Khaira—was the Education Minister.
Cheema criticised the then government for failing to register a single FIR or take action against those responsible. He argued that the missing portion of the commission’s report could help uncover the truth about what transpired and shed light on the conduct of those in power during that period.
The call to recover the report comes amid fresh legislative efforts to combat crimes against religious scriptures, a sensitive and recurring issue in Punjab’s political and social landscape.
