AMRITSAR: A person vandalised the life-size statue of Dr BR Ambedkar by climbing atop it, striking it with a hammer, and attempting to damage the Constitution book sculpture placed beside the statue.
The incident occurred on Republic Day when an extension ladder had been placed to garland the statue of the ‘Father of the Indian Constitution,’ located on Heritage Street.
The person, later identified as Akashdeep Singh, a resident of Moga, climbed the statue and vandalised it by striking it multiple times with a hammer.
He also damaged the Constitution book, which is an integral part of the statue.
During the incident, there was considerable activity on Heritage Street.
When people saw the young man vandalising the statue, they urged him to come down. Initially, he argued with them and refused to descend, but eventually, he agreed and dropped the hammer.
He was later apprehended by the security staff and handed over to the police. It is not clear how the person obtained the hammer used to damage the sculpture or his intentions behind the act.
As the youth was being escorted to the police station, someone from the crowd slapped him. Following this, the security guards managed to pull him away from the crowd and took him to the police station.
Meanwhile, the incident has drawn widespread condemnation. Lok Sabha Member of Parliament Gurjit Aujla expressed that it is because of Dr Ambedkar that India was granted the right to equality.
He called for immediate intervention from the Punjab government, given the gravity of the situation, and demanded a thorough investigation into the matter.
While condemning the incident, former Punjab chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal said that this is a heinous act that has hurt the sentiments of millions.
“I demand stern action against the culprit and a thorough inquiry to unravel the conspiracy behind this shameful incident. Let’s stand united against such vile attempts to create divisions in our society,” said he.
