Another Sikh becomes a hate crime victim in the US

He was supposed to be at a gurudwara to pay obeisance, but 65-year-old Iqbal Singh ended up in hospital, stabbed in the neck by a black man.

Talking to ANI from his bed at Santa Clara's Velly Medical Centre where he is recovering from his injuries, Singh said: " I was shoked and failed to understand why he had done this to me."

"I started shouting and running to the appartment though he tailed me for a few yards, but I managed to reach the apprtment and locked the door," he added.

He said that his family had reported the matter to the police as a hate crime.

"I did nothing to provoke him. So, the only reason I can see for what happened, is that I was wearing a turban, and had a beard," Singh said.

Singh said that at the time of the attack he was waiting for the rest of the family to come down to the carport from their apartment on Agate Drive. They were to go to the San Jose Gurudwara Sahib.

Iqbal Singh said that belonged to the village of Khushalpur in Amritsar District and had been living in the United States with his son Satinder Singh for the last one year.

Talking to ANI, Dr. Pritpal Singh, the coordinator of the American Gurudwara Parbhadhak Committee, said that this incident would not only distrub the family of the victim, but also spread panic in the region, the drop in hate crimes notwithstanding.

"We are in touch with the concerned department and would provide help to the government for an awarness campaign whenever needed," said Dr. Singh after visiting Iqbal Singh in hospital.

There are more than half-a-million Sikh living in the United States, and some of them have achieved a reputation in American society.

Jaswant Singh Hoti, the secretary of the San Jose Gurudwara, said that since 9 /11, there had been many instances of Sikhs ending up as hate crime victims in the United States.

Meanwhile, sources have informed that Everett Thompson, 20, of Santa Clara, was arrested by the Santa Clara police in connection with the hate crime attack. He is presently lodged in the Santa Clara County Jail on charges of attempted murder and a hate crime.

Article Source: http://www.share.onlypunjab.com

Please Rate this Article

5 out of 54 out of 53 out of 52 out of 51 out of 5 

Not yet Rated