A Moga court on Thursday, July 7,  sentenced three Dera Sacha Sauda followers to three years imprisonment for desecration of Guru Granth Sahib at Malke village in 2015. The court of Judicial Magistrate First Class Rahul Garg also imposed a fine of Rs 5,000 each on Prithvi Singh, resident of Baghapurana who was a member of the Sirsa-based dera’s state committee, and followers Mithu Singh Maan and Amardeep Singh of Malke village. It also acquitted two more accused, Satnam Singh of Baghapurana and Davinder Singh Harie Wala village, for want of evidence. In November 2015, torn pages of ‘bir’ (copy) of Guru Granth Sahib were found strewn on the streets of Malke village in Moga. A police case was subsequently registered.

In October 2018, a special investigation team (SIT) of Punjab Police arrested the five Dera followers in connection with the incident. “Three of the five persons named in the FIR have been convicted in the case. The trio have been awarded three years of imprisonment. Both punishments will run parallel,” inspector Dalbir Singh, a member of the SIT, said.