NCM takes cognizance in elderly Sikh attack at Richmond Hill in USA
By: Pallab Ghosh
Radiance News Media
Racial discrimination or brutal attacks on elderly Sikh people is nothing new in the United States of America (USA). There have been numerous instances in the past. The sad part is the Sikh community has been living in the USA for ages still such sad things happen. On April 3, 2022, an elderly Sikh Nirmal Singh (late '70s) was physically abused while he was walking in Richmond Hill, Queens. The Consulate General of India in New York not only condemned the brutal attack by calling it "deeply disturbing" but also assured justice.
New York Police Commissioner Keechant Sewell informed that New York Police Department (NYPD) Chief of Detectives James Essig was probing into the attack and soon the person will be nabbed.
Back home a Sikh delegation from an organisation in Punjab had called upon National Commission for Minorities (NCM), Iqbal Singh Lalpura, and expressed their concerns. The Commission informed it has taken cognizance regarding the attack on Sikh persons at Richmond Hill, New York.
One of the Sikh people was attacked while walking in Richmond Hill, a neighbourhood also known as Little Punjab for its sizable population of Sikh and Indian immigrants. He had been visiting New York from Punjab and has since returned there to be with his family. As reports of such instances have increased recently, Iqbal Singh Lalpura, Chairman, National Commission for Minorities (NCM) has expressed his concern over this.
Accordingly, the Ministry of External Affairs has been requested vide letter dated 21.04.22 to take up the matter with their counterpart in the USA so that these incidents are not repeated in the future and appropriate steps are taken to prevent and combat hate and secure the safety of Sikhs in the USA.