Archive · 14 Aug 2026
I Am Not Afraid: Sukhbir Badal After Nanded Kirpan Attack
Sukhbir Singh Badal is a very important leader in India and the head of a political party called the Shiromani Akali Dal.
He went to a Sikh temple, called a gurudwara, in a city called Nanded in Maharashtra.
While he was there, a man tried to hurt him with a special knife called a kirpan.
The guards stopped the man, but Badal's right hand was injured and he needed surgery.
The next day, Badal told reporters from the hospital that he was feeling perfect and not afraid.
He said some people do not want peace in Punjab, a state in India, and that is why they attacked him.
The man who attacked him, Jaspal Singh, told the police he was upset about drugs in Punjab during the Badal government's time.
Badal also remembered that someone had tried to hurt him at the Golden Temple before.
He thanked Guru Gobind Singh ji and said his party will keep working for peace and harmony.
Several leaders, like India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi, also called to check on him.
Shiromani Akali Dal chief Sukhbir Singh Badal was attacked with a kirpan by a Nihang at Gurdwara Mata Sahib Devan Ji Mugat near Takht Sri Hazur Sahib in Nanded, Maharashtra, on Thursday.
The accused, 62-year-old Jaspal Singh, reportedly told police he attacked over the rise of drug abuse during the Badal government's tenure, saying he 'just felt like doing this'; Inspector Santosh Kendre was also injured.
A day after the attack, Badal said he is 'feeling perfect' and 'not afraid,' alleging forces seeking to disturb peace in Punjab, which see the Shiromani Akali Dal as a hindrance, were behind it.
Badal said a similar attempt was made on him at the Golden Temple in Amritsar (reported as one year, two years, or in 2024 in different accounts) and noted both attacks occurred at holy sites.
Nanded SP Rohan said there was no security lapse and Badal had full Z+ cover, while Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis called his wife Harsimrat Kaur Badal to enquire about his health.
- Who
- Sukhbir Singh Badal, 64, Shiromani Akali Dal chief and former Deputy Chief Minister of Punjab, who was attacked; the accused is 62-year-old Nihang Jaspal Singh.
- What
- Badal was attacked with a kirpan at Gurdwara Mata Sahib Devan Ji Mugat, suffering a right-hand injury that required surgery; he was treated at Yashosai Hospital.
- When
- Thursday at around 1:30 pm; Badal spoke to reporters the following day, Friday, August 14, 2026.
- Where
- Gurdwara Mata Sahib Devan Ji Mugat near Takht Sri Hazur Sahib in Nanded, Maharashtra, India.
- Why
- The accused reportedly told police he attacked over the rise of drug abuse during the Badal government's tenure; Badal alleges forces seeking to disturb peace in Punjab are behind the attack.
Badal's Account
Suspect's Reported Motive
Reason for the attack
Badal's Account
Badal says forces that do not want peace in Punjab, and which see the Shiromani Akali Dal as a hindrance, are behind the repeated attempts on his life.
Suspect's Reported Motive
The accused, Jaspal Singh, reportedly confessed he attacked Badal over the rise of drug abuse during the Badal government's tenure, saying he 'just felt like doing this.'
Framing of the attack
Badal's Account
SAD leaders called the attack a 'direct attack on Sikhism' and blamed 'anti-Sikh forces' for repeated attempts on the party chief.
Suspect's Reported Motive
Police said there was no security lapse and that the attacker was overpowered and taken into custody immediately.
- Victim
- Sukhbir Singh Badal, 64, SAD chief and former Punjab Deputy Chief Minister
- Accused
- Jaspal Singh, 62, a Nihang who had worked at the gurudwara for two years and hailed from Pune
- Weapon
- Kirpan
- Location
- Gurdwara Mata Sahib Devan Ji Mugat, Takht Sri Hazur Sahib, Nanded, Maharashtra
- Injury and treatment
- Right-hand injury requiring surgery; treated at Yashosai Hospital
- Time of attack
- 1:30 pm on Thursday
- Security
- Full Z+ cover; Nanded SP Rohan said there was no security lapse
- Previous attack
- Attempt on his life at the Golden Temple, Amritsar (reported as one year, two years, or in 2024 in different accounts)
