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.
Indian-origin candidates across both the Conservative and Labour parties on Friday registered strong results in the UK's General Election, with around a dozen MPs retaining their seats alongside some new faces.
Jeetendra Harish Belani, 37, of Nagpur made the admission in the Pittsburgh federal court before Chief Federal District Judge Mark Hornak on Monday, federal prosecutor Scott Brady said.
A 20-year old Indian man was charged with violating US immigration law after he tried to enter the country by presenting a counterfeit Slovenian passport as his own to federal border authorities at the airport here.
Child actor and ballet dancer Jack Burns, who starred in several TV shows including "Outlander" and "In Plain Sight", has passed away at the age of 14.
Speaking at the COP25 climate conference in Madrid, the young activist from Manipur who has already spoken in 21 countries on climate change, gave the world a glimpse of her resolve as she urged global leaders to "act now against climate change".
