BATHINDA, Jan. 15 -- In a breakthrough in the investigation into the disappearance of 328 saroops (sacred copies) of Guru Granth Sahib, chief minister Bhagwant Mann on Wednesday revealed that the special investigation team (SIT) has traced 169 saroops from two deras in the Banga area of Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar (formerly Nawanshahr) district. Addressing a gathering at the Aam Aadmi Party's Maghi Mela conference in Muktsar, the CM vowed strict action and said that of the 169 recovered saroops, 139 were found to have no official record or serial numbers, raising questions about unauthorised distribution and mismanagement."The sanctity of Guru Granth Sahib is paramount. Our government is committed to tracing every single missing saroop," Mann said. "Recovering saroops is not an achievement of the AAP government, but it is our duty," CM said, adding that publishing of saroops is the responsibility of the Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC) and that such institutions failed in their duty due to the Akalis. "These leaders cannot be forgiven for such sins and mischiefs," said the CM. The recovery in Banga marks the first physical evidence of the missing scriptures being located outside official SGPC custody. Of the 169, 115 saroops were numbered, and the remaining 54 had no serial numbers. Records exist for 30 saroops - 20 were given to one gurdwara at a village and 10 to another in Banga, according to AAP state media in-charge Baltej Pannu. The SIT on Wednesday visited Banga-based religious place named Nabh Kanwal Raja Sahib and cross-verified the saroops in the presence of the management committee. Situated in Mazaara Nau Abad village of Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar district, the present premises were established in 1971, though the site's history dates back to the late 18th century. "All the investigative proceedings were carried out taking care of due 'maryada'. The SIT members found 169 saroops inside the premises. Of these total saroops, 20 were procured from SGPC in the name of village Mazaara Nau Abad gurdwara on January 8, 2009, while 10 saroops are in the name of Gurdwara Sahib Patshahi Nauvi of village Dosanjh Khurd of SBS district on the same date in the same year," said the SIT spokesperson. He added that instead of being given to gurdwaras, which procured these 30 saroops, they were kept at Raja Sahib. "However, the administrative body and management of Raja Sahib had no record of the remaining 139 saroops. We have also recorded the statements of the members of the managing committee," the official added. Inderjit Singh, chairman of Raja Sahib's management committee, could not be contacted for comments despite repeated attempts. One of the members, pleading anonymity, said "Many of the saroops are over three decades old. Besides procuring saroops from SGPC, several NRIs handed them to the sect for their religious upkeep." The case dates back to May 2020, when an internal audit at the SGPC publication house at Gurdwara Ramsar Sahib in Amritsar revealed a discrepancy of 328 saroops. While the Akal Takht had initially conducted an inquiry and awarded religious punishment (tankhah) to several officials, the lack of criminal proceedings remained a flashpoint for Panthic organisations. An FIR was registered on December 7, 2025, invoking sections related to criminal breach of trust, forgery, and hurting religious sentiments. The SIT, led by AIG (Vigilance) Jagatpreet Singh, recently arrested the prime accused, former SGPC internal auditor Satinder Singh Kohli. The Akal Takht jathedar recently directed the SGPC to cooperate with the SIT. At the conference, the national AAP leadership set the stage for the next state assembly elections, stating that the party would contest the polls under chief minister Bhagwant Mann. AAP's Punjab in-charge Manish Sisodia said,"People of Punjab have acknowledged the welfare programmes initiated by the Mann government, and it can be gauged from the large attendance at the programme." The SIT visited the Bathinda residence of former Akal Takht jathedar Giani Harpreet Singh on Wednesday. SIT member Jagatpreet Singh told reporters that Giani Harpreet, who now heads the Akali Dal (Punar Surjit), was the jathedar when a religious enquiry committee was instituted....