Dalit Man, Killed at Singhu Border Farmers’ Protest Site

NEW DELHI: The 35-year-old man, who was mutilated and murdered near the Singhu border early Friday, was identified as Lakhbir Singh. According to police sources, Lakhbir belonged to the Dalit community.

Lakhbir Singh was a resident of the Cheema Khurd village in Tarn Taran in Punjab and is survived by his wife Jaspreet Kaur and three children aged 8, 10 and 12. He was adopted by his uncle Harnam Singh when he was six months old. His biological father was Darshan Singh, police sources said. He worked as a labourer in his villa

Lakhbir Singh’s mutilated body was found near a farmers’ protest site at Kundli in Haryana’s Sonipat district on Friday. One of his hands and legs were chopped off, and he was tied to a metal barricade when the locals first spotted him.

As the gruesome murder came to light, the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM) alleged that Nihang Sikhs lynched the 35-year-old man whose one hand was cut from his wrist. The SKM is an umbrella body of over 40 farmer unions leading the agitation against the Centre’s three farm laws.

“A Nihang group at the scene has claimed responsibility, saying that the incident took place because he attempted to commit sacrilege with regard to the Sarbaloh Granth. It has been reported that this deceased had been staying with the same group of Nihangs for some time,” the Samyukta Kisan Morcha said in its statement, blaming the Nihangs for the incident.

However, the police said they received no information about who was responsible for the incident. “There is no information on who’s responsible. An FIR has been lodged against unknown persons.