Washington: India’s ambassador to the US Taranjit Singh Sandhu was heckled by pro-Khalistan protesters during a visit to a New York gurdwara on Sunday before the agitators were escorted out by mainstream Sikhs who welcomed the envoy. Pro-Khalistan elements falsely claimed that an “embarrassed and agitated” Sandhu “aborted” his visit and “fled the Hicksville gurdwara in haste”. Footage and photographs of the visit showed Sandhu going on to complete his engagement after being welcomed by moderate Sikhs, who constitute a majority of the community.
“Privileged to join the local Sangat, including from Afghanistan, at Guru Nanak Darbar of Long Island in celebrating Gurpurab - listened to Kirtan, spoke about Guru Nanak’s everlasting message of togetherness, unity, & equality, partook langar, and sought blessings for all,” Sandhu tweeted after the visit.
In the clip, Himmat Singh is heard accusing the Indian government of orchestrating the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, designated by India as a terrorist, who was president of the Surrey gurdwara in Canada and the coordinator for the Canadian chapter of the Khalistan Referendum, a charge endorsed by the Trudeau government in Canada, leading to a rift between New Delhi and Ottawa.
“I only wanted answers from ambassador Sandhu as to why India is using violence to stop the global Khalistan Referendum voting,” the organization, Sikhs for Justice, quoted Himmat Singh as saying.
In a communication, Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, SFJ general counsel, said that Himmat Singh led the group of Khalistanis at the Hicksville gurdwara in New York while also accusing ambassador Sandhu in connection with what he claimed was India’s role in the killing of Nijjar.
Pannun, who alleges he was the target of an Indian assassination plot foiled by US intelligence, a claim implicitly endorsed by US intelligence sources in leaks to the media, said that the “American phase” of the “Khalistan referendum voting is going to start from January 28, 2024 in San Francisco, California”.