Dramatic Encounter! Police Shoot Down Amritsar Grenade Attack Accused
Grenade Attack on Amritsar Temple: Suspect Killed in Encounter Amid Rising Tensions
A dramatic police encounter in Rajasansi, near Amritsar, resulted in the death of one suspect linked to a grenade attack on the Thakurdwara Temple, which occurred late on March 14. Punjab’s Director General of Police, Gaurav Yadav, confirmed that the Commissionerate Police, acting on precise intelligence, tracked down the perpetrators of the assault that marked the first attack on a religious site in Amritsar in recent months. The second suspect escaped, and a manhunt is underway.
The incident began when two motorcycle-borne assailants hurled a grenade at the temple in Amritsar’s Khandwala area, damaging its walls and shattering windows. Captured on CCTV, the attackers briefly surveyed the site before fleeing after the blast at 12:35 a.m. Miraculously, the priest and his family, residing upstairs, emerged unscathed. The police registered an FIR under the Explosive Substances Act at Chheharta station, swiftly identifying the culprits.
During Monday’s confrontation, the suspects fired at police, injuring Head Constable Gurpreet Singh and grazing Inspector Amolak Singh’s turban. In self-defense, officers returned fire, fatally wounding one assailant, later pronounced dead at Civil Hospital. Authorities suspect Pakistan’s ISI may be orchestrating such attacks, a claim echoed in the 13 grenade incidents targeting Punjab’s border regions since November 2024.
Political backlash has intensified. Shiromani Akali Dal’s Daljit Cheema called it evidence of a “complete collapse of law and order,” demanding a judicial probe, while BJP’s Tarun Chugh urged a CBI investigation. Critics argue the AAP government under CM Bhagwant Mann has failed to curb rising unrest, risking Punjab’s fragile peace.
