Sikhs call for probe after North Carolina Gurdwara vandalised
Darpan News Desk IANS, 30 Jan, 2023 12:49 PM
New York, Jan 30 (IANS) A recent string of attacks by vandals on a Sikh temple in the US has left the community worried with leaders asking for a thorough investigation into the incidents.
In various incidents over the last two months, the windows, lights and security cameras of Gurdwara Sahib Khalsa Darbar on East Arrowood Road in Charlotte, North Carolina, were shattered and damaged, local media reported.
"It's shocking for us to experience things like this. We're a small community in Charlotte..." Ajay Singh, a Sikh community member told the Charlotte Observer.
According to the 2021 American Community Survey, there are roughly 6,900 Sikhs out of 10.5 million people across North Carolina.
Singh said acts of vandalism at the Gurdwara started last fall with trash being thrown around the area.
"On January 3, a window near the worship room was destroyed. Two days later, a window was broken near a room for children," he said.
According to the Observer, Gurdwara members had filed a police report but Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police denied there were any between December 1 and January 13. Police did not respond to a Charlotte Observer inquiry on whether there was an active investigation there.
"We really need law enforcement to step up," Pawanjit Singh, a member of the Gurdwara, told Charlotte Observer. "They need to find who is doing this and why they are doing this."
Pawanjit Singh further said that no one was present at the gurdwara when the acts occurred, and the motive of attack remains unknown.
"Ninety per cent of police officers probably do not know who Sikhs are," he said. "When they don't know they can't relate to what an act of vandalism at a Sikh temple means."
The community leaders have set up a GoFundMe page to help cover the cost of the damages and install a safety fence and a gate. Apart from being a place of worship, the gurdwara runs a school attended by more than 40 children, and provides community meals, Punjabi language, leadership, and music classes.
An Indian man who came to Dubai on a visit visa, killed his wife over suspicion that she was cheating on him, the Court of First Instance here has heard.
Indian-origin Alok Sharma, who was named the UK's new Minister to lead the crucial UN climate talks, has immense challenges and pressure ahead and this is the first real test post-Brexit, climate experts said on Friday.
Singh admitted to picking up several illegal border crossers between January and May 2019 for payments and transporting them inland, the Justice Department said.
While men and children wore Lakers jerseys, many women showed up in the traditional salwar kameez in purple and yellow, The American Bazaar report said earlier this week.
The commander of North America's aging early-warning system says the United States and Canada have lost their military advantage in the Arctic to Russia.
