A gunman opened fire on Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader and former Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal outside the Golden Temple in Amritsar on Wednesday morning.

Badal, who escaped unhurt, was performing guard duty as part of a religious punishment at the time of the attack.

The shooter, identified as Narayan Singh Chaura, a former militant, was swiftly overpowered by bystanders and arrested by police.

Visuals from the scene showed the gunman approaching the wheelchair-bound Badal, who was dressed in a blue ‘sewadar’ uniform and holding a spear. As the attacker drew his weapon, a nearby ‘sewadar’ reacted swiftly, pushing the shooter aside before any harm could be done.

Badal, 62, was carrying out his duties following the Akal Takht’s imposition of a religious punishment, known as ‘tankhah’, for mistakes committed during the SAD’s rule in Punjab from 2007 to 2017. The punishment required Badal and several Akali Dal leaders to perform various acts of service, including cleaning toilets, serving in the community kitchen, and reciting prayers.

Due to his health, Badal and another leader, Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa, were assigned to serve as gatekeepers at the Golden Temple for two days. Badal, whose leg is in a cast, carried out the duty while seated in a wheelchair.

The religious punishment followed Badal’s public admission of mistakes, including his controversial decision to pardon Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh in a 2007 blasphemy case.

(With IANS input)