England: Pakistani arrested for vandalising Guru Arjan Dev Gurdwara, note on Kashmir posted in the Gurdwara recovered

A man of Pakistani origin who had vandalized a Gurudwara in England's Derby has been arrested by the police, (courtesy: NBT)

Police in England’s Derby has arrested a Pakistani national for vandalising Guru Arjan Dev Gurdwara there today morning.  It also recovered a note on Kashmir which was posted in the Gurdwara.

In the attack which took place on May 25 (Monday) morning at Guru Arjan Dev Gurdwara in Derby, England, the unidentified man had broken the Gurudwara’s windows and local media reported that vandalism resulted in damages worth hundreds of pounds. 

https://twitter.com/ANI/status/1264908330171920385?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

The note recovered had a message written in English: “Try to help Kashmir people otherwise problem everyone (sic)” and also had a phone number scribed on it. It is reported that after the incident, the restoration work on the premises has begun. 

Images of the person caught on CCTV entering the premises were shared by the gurdwara on social media while reporting the incident, causing concern and demands for his arrest.

Guru Arjan Dev Gurdwara issued statement after the attack

The gurdwara said in a statement: “This morning at 6 am an individual entered the Gurdwara premises causing thousands of pounds of damage…We can confirm that no individuals were injured and that the clean-up process has begun”.

“This hate crime or any sort of crime against a Sikh will never deter us in our practice of Seva and Simran. We will continue the service of the community with Langar and continue to stream live nitnem (daily prayers). We will ensure the safety of all our Sevadhaars (volunteers) and employees”, it added.

The recent attack on a Gurudwara in Kabul was conducted to avenge the supposed ‘plight of Muslims in Kashmir’

On March 25th, armed terrorists and suicide bombers attacked a Gurudwara in Shor Bazar area in Kabul, Afghanistan, leaving 27 dead and at least 15 injured. According to reports, the Islamic State communique claiming responsibility for the attack identified the terrorist as an Indian national ‘Abu Khalid al-Hindi’ who carried out the attack in order to avenge the supposed ‘plight of Muslims in Kashmir’. Meanwhile, Afghan and Western security agencies had believed that the attack was ordered by Quetta Shura of the Taliban at the behest of Pakistani intelligence.

OpIndia Staff: Staff reporter at OpIndia