Pakistan-origin man arrested for vandalising Guru Arjan Dev Gurdwara in England
A Pakistan-origin man was arrested by police in England’s Derby after he allegedly vandalised Guru Arjan Dev Gurdwara there on Monday morning. The police are also investigating a possible association of the man with other groups. Times Now has learnt that the man posted ‘Kashmir’-related messages before carrying out the act.
Sikh organisations, as well as leaders, condemned the horrific act. “Shocking news of vandalism of Guru Arjan Dev Ji Gurudwara in Derby, the UK by a man of Pakistani origin, who’s been arrested. Such intolerance and hatred must end if humanity has to survive, especially when the world is in the midst of an unprecedented crisis (sic),” Captain Amarinder Singh said in a tweet.
Confirming the development, Sikh Federation UK said that the ‘individual responsible for this shocking criminal and physical damage’ has now been identified and arrested by Derby Police.
Manjinder Singh Sirsa, President, Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee, condemned the act and said that he was ‘deeply hurt with another incident of hate crime’. Sirsa also urged External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar to raise the issue of hate crimes against Sikhs in the UK with his British counterpart.
About the incident
According to local media reports, the crime took place at 8.30 am local time. The front doors of the gurdwara at Stanhope Street there were smashed. According to Derby Telegraph, a local publication, the incident was linked to a stabbing in a nearby locality of Normanton Road. In that incident, a 41-year-old individual was allegedly stabbed by a man for reasons yet under investigation. The accused arrested by the police for stabbing the man is reportedly the same person responsible for vandalising the gurdwara.
On its Facebook page, the gurdwara said, “From the evidence obtained thus far, the male’s attire and the note which was left, appears that he is of Muslim background. This is an area with a multi-cultural community, where all have lived and worked together for many years. Especially during these times, faith-based charities have been at the forefront.”
“This incident nor this message will create any tension between relations, but how you react to this will. We acknowledge this may be an individual or a small group however we should not malign the whole Muslim community and therefore request people to refrain from such posts,” the gurdwara further wrote.
