10-year-old sexually harassed in Ludhiana: Gurdwara music teacher arrested one day later

A day after Sadar Jagraon police booked a music teacher for allegedly sexually assaulting a 10-year-old girl at a local gurdwara, the accused was arrested on Saturday.

The accused, Amandeep Singh of Hathur, was nabbed by a member of the Shri Guru Granth Sahib Satkar Committee, who beat him up and forced him to confess to the crime on camera.

The accused was then handed over to the police. The video in which the accused confesses to the crime was uploaded online and made the rounds on social media. HT could not independently verify the authenticity of the video.

Admits molestation of two minors

During the trial, the defendant admitted to having sexually molested two underage girls. However, only one of the girls’ parents filed a complaint.

The accused was arrested after the mother of a ten-year-old girl alleged that he sexually assaulted her daughter on the Gurdwara premises.

The girl had signed up for music lessons at the Gurdwara to learn Kirtan.

Based on the complaint filed by the minor’s mother, the police filed an FIR against the accused.

The complainant said she learned that the local Gurdwara had hired a music teacher to teach kirtan to children. Since her youngest daughter, 10, was interested in music, she sent her for lessons from June 11.

The plaintiff alleged that when her daughter returned home from the Gurdwara on June 14, she was frightened and cried frequently. When questioned, the girl said that the teacher “touched her inappropriately and sexually harassed her.”

Sub-Inspector (SI) Kirandeep Kaur, who is investigating the case, said the police have registered a case under Section 354-A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and relevant sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act at Sadar Jagraon police station. The accused has been arrested, she added.