Despite assurances by state government emissaries led by Punjab Assembly Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan to Gurjeet Singh Khalsa (43), who has been demanding stricter punishment in sacrilege cases, the activist refused to end his agitation atop a 400-foot-high BSNL tower in Samana. He would “not move an inch” before his only demand was implemented, he said.
Addressing the gathering and government officials via phone from the tower, Khalsa said while he welcomed the state government’s decision to take note of the struggle and the decision to call a special Vidhan Sabha session to bring the law, he would not end his fight.
Dairy owner, farmer by profession
- Gurjeet Singh Khalsa hails from Kheri Nagaiyan village in Patiala. He has been protesting atop the tower since Oct 2024
- A dairy owner and farmer by profession, he said his religious sentiments were hurt reading about sacrilege incidents in the state
- In 2024, he decided that his brother will take care of the business and the family when he chose the path of struggle, demanding strict laws against sacrilege. His son Ashmeet Singh passed his matriculation examination last year
- Atop the tower, he has a makeshift tarpaulin shelter and two caretakers who come with food and water once a day. In the absence of any physical activity, his blood pressure and sugar levels fluctuate at times
“I have not moved an inch from my vow ever since I started my protest atop the tower. I will only come down when the law is implemented…. Let the government pass the law and implement it. Only then I will end my protest,” he said.
Khalsa, has been protesting atop the BSNL tower since October 12, 2024, demanding stricter punishment in sacrilege cases. On Saturday evening, the state government announced a special Assembly session to discuss a stricter anti-sacrilege law. Last year, CM Bhagwant Mann introduced the Punjab Prevention of Offences against Holy Scripture(s) Bill, 2025, which proposes punishment ranging from 10 years to life imprisonment for acts of sacrilege. Only police officers of the DSP rank and above would be authorised to investigate such cases.
Following a debate, the Bill was referred to a select committee for discussions with stakeholders in 2025. However, the committee is yet to submit its report.
Earlier in the day, Sandhwan, along with a delegation of MLAs, met a six-member committee of the Samana Tower Morcha, comprising Gurpreet Singh, Amitoj Singh Mann, Pushpinder Singh Kaka, Talwinder Singh Aulakh, Amarjit Singh Maryada and Kaka Singh Kotra. He announced in front of a large gathering at Baba Banda Singh Bahadur Chowk that he would “reach Samana Morcha on April 14 with the draft of the law passed by the government”.
He said, “I will personally hand over the draft of the law to Bhai Gurjeet Singh Khalsa, who has been sitting atop the tower since October 2024.”
Khalsa has the support of hundreds of members of the Sarb Dharam Beadbi Rokko Morcha