The SIT was set up by the Amarinder government in September to probe cases of sacrilege of Guru Granth Sahib and the firing ordered on those protesting in October 2015 when the Akali Dal-BJP government was in power
New Delhi: Bollywood actor Akshay Kumar recorded his statement with the Special Investigation Team (SIT) at Punjab Police headquarters in Chandigarh on Wednesday morning in connection with the incidents of police firing at Kotkapura and Behbal Kalan in 2015 following the desecration of Guru Granth Sahib in Bargari, Faridkot.
The SIT is investigating incidents of sacrilege of the Guru Granth Sahib and the subsequent firing on protesters in 2015.
Kumar was questioned regarding his alleged role in brokering a Rs 100-crore deal between the controversial godman, who was later convicted of rape and sentenced to 20 years' imprisonment and Sukhbir Badal in Mumbai in 2015 just days before the release of a film of the godman.
The 51-year-old has denied that he arranged any such meeting or had any role in brokering the deal. He had termed the allegations as "rumours and false statements" about his involvement with Ram Rahim Singh.
The SIT had summoned Kumar, who in a tweet denied the allegations and clarified he had never met Gurmeet Ram Rahim, to appear personally for questioning in Amritsar.
"I have never ever met Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh in my life, anywhere. I learnt from social media at some point that Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh resided for a while at some place in my locality Juhu in Mumbai but we never ever crossed each other's paths," Akshay had tweeted recently after he was summoned by the Punjab Police.
Kumar had, however, expressed his inability to come to Amritsar and had requested the SIT to question him at Chandigarh.
Former Rampura MLA Harbans Singh, in his statement recorded before the justice Ranjit Singh panel on October 9, 2017, said that Badal had not only paved the way for a pardon from Sikh clergy for Gurmeet Ram Rahim in a blasphemy case but had also agreed to help release his film in Punjab for Rs 100 crore.
On his part, Sukhbir Badal said on Tuesday that he had never met Akshay outside Punjab. "I have never met Akshay Kumar outside Punjab," Badal said.
Badal was questioned by the SIT here at the Punjab Police headquarters on Monday. He termed the questioning as a sham and alleged that the Congress government in Punjab led by Chief Minister Amarinder Singh was indulging in political vendetta.
Former Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal was on November 16 questioned by the SIT headed by additional Director General of Police (ADGP) Pramod Kumar and Inspector General Kunwar Vijay Pratap.
The senior Badal said that he told the SIT that he had not ordered firing on Sikh protesters agitating against the sacrilege incidents in October 2015.
Chief Minister Amarinder Singh had said earlier that his government had no role in the summoning of the Badals and the actor by the SIT.
The SIT was set up by the Amarinder government in September this year to probe cases of sacrilege of Guru Granth Sahib and the firing ordered on those protesting against the sacrilege cases in October 2015 when the Akali Dal-BJP alliance government headed by Parkash Singh Badal was in power in the state.
Two persons were killed in the police firing in Behbal Kalan village near Kotkapura town in Faridkot district.
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