Punjab Chief Minster Parkash Singh Badal on Tuesday strongly condemned the totally unprovoked assault on members of the Sikh community by some unruly elements in Birmingham (UK) earlier. Meanwhile, SAD president Sukhbir Badal has directed the party representatives in England to gather all information on the incident and take every appropriate measure to help in bringing the guilty to book. Sukhbir also directed his party leaders and workers there “to offer all possible help to the victims and their kin” and work in complete solidarity with them in this difficult hour. Union Minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal is maintaining constant touch with the PMO in this regard as also with her counterpart in the Ministry of External Affairs to ensure prompt and effective Governmental response to the painful development.
Describing the attack as “inhuman, brutal and extremely worrying”, Badal asked the PM Narendra Modi to take up with his counterpart in the UK the issue of safety and security of minorities, especially of the law abiding members of the Sikh disaspora, who have been living in the UK and many other countries for centuries as “most civilized and productive members of the local society”. “Their contribution to strengthening race and communal relations in multi-cultural societies is acknowledged and highly lauded by governments as well as political and social leaders in the countries of their adoption. As such, the attack is shocking and totally unacceptable,” he said. Badal asked the Central Government to press the Indian High Commissioner in london to push for a renewed awareness campaign about the role played by members of the Sikh community in building modern democratic, social institutions as well economic and intellectual progress in that country.