| Ipoh, Malaysia | 22 Feb 2017 | Asia Samachar |
Police are investigating an alleged act of vandalism and banner burning at a gurdwara in Ipoh, the state capital of Perak.
It is believed to be related to an incident where a few Sikh youth were seen bringing down a Sikh-event banner and then burning it — all captured on a video recording shared on the Youtube – at Gurdwara Sahib Greentown on Sunday (19 Feb 2017).
“We have lodged a police report on the incident,” Greentown gurdwara management committee (GMC) secretary Daaljit Singh tells Asia Samachar.
The report was lodged by the gurdwara deputy president Jagit Singh.
It is believed that the incident was linked to an earlier brouhaha at Gurdwara Sahib Lembah Jaya in Ampang, Selangor. At least one of the persons seen in the video was believed to be a family member of a person involved in the Lembah Jaya event.
SEE ALSO: Two Sikhs ejected from Lembah Jaya gurdwara
SEE ALSO: Ek Granth, Ek Panth, Ek Maryada: A logo that says it all
On 12 Feb 2017, two Sikhs were ejected from the Lembah Jaya gurdwara. In the incident, a Sikh youth was alleged to have stood up and disrupted an on-going sermon by an invited speaker Dr Karminder Singh by loudly saying the Sikh greeting before proceeding to speak. He was escorted out of the darbar sahib by a GMC member.
It is understood that the youth had lodged a police report after the incident.
In the Greentown incident report, Jagit claimed that four turbaned Punjabi youth had arrived at the gurdwara compound in Ipoh in a red car, and proceeded to take down a banner, and then burnt it in the gurdwaras car park.
The banner is connected to religious programme in collaboration with the Malaysian Gurdwaras Council (MGC), the report added.
The actions at the Sikh place of worship has raised anger amongst Sikhs, it added.
The banner was promoting the slogan Ek Granth Ek Panth Ek Maryada mooted by the MGC, a body which represents most of the 120 gurdwaras in Malaysia.
MGC has organised a series of nationwide talks on the slogan, mostly delivered by Dr Karminder, a senior Malaysian civil servant and a member of MGC’s religious advisory board.
In the video clip showing the purported burning of the banner at the Ipoh gurdwara, one of the youth involved could also be overheard asking Dr Karminder to ‘stop what you have been doing’.
The video was entitled ‘Against Ek Granth Ek Panth Ek Maryada’.
The Greentown gurdwara was formerly known as Gurdwara Sahib Ashby Road.
[ASIA SAMACHAR is an online newspaper for Sikhs in Southeast Asia and surrounding countries. We have a Facebook page, do give it a LIKE. Follow us on Twitter. Visit our website: www.asiasamachar.com]
RELATED STORIES:
Gurdwara committee firm on expelling disruptors (Asia Samachar, 19 Feb 2017)
Two opposing views on Lembah Jaya incident (Asia Samachar, 13 Feb 2017)
Two Sikhs ejected from Lembah Jaya gurdwara (Asia Samachar, 12 Feb 2017)
70 Sikh youth at Klang critical thinking camp (Asia Samachar, 10 Feb 2017)
Bibi Inderpal shares practical solutions to daily life challenges (Asia Samachar, 5 Feb 2017)
Inderpal Kaur: Once bedridden, she’s now fired up on Gurbani understanding (Asia Samachar, 28 Jan 2017)
Teaching critical thinking at Sikh family day camps (Asia Samachar, 24 Jan 2017)
Kuala Lumpur to host next annual Global Sikh Council meeting (Asia Samachar, 21 Jan 2017)
Karminder, MGC get solid support from Selayang gurdwara leadership (Asia Samachar, 2 Jan 2017)
Seremban leadership endorses ‘Ek Granth, Ek Panth, Ek Maryada’ (Asia Samachar, 27 Nov 2016)
Klang gurdwara makes history with launch of ‘Ek Granth, Ek Panth, Ek Maryada’ (Asia Samachar, 24 Nov 016)
The Rahao Principle – Part 1 (Asia Samachar, 10 Nov 2016)
Time to move Gurmat parchaar in Ipoh (Asia Samachar, 4 Nov 2016)
Ek Granth, Ek Panth, Ek Maryada: A logo that says it all (Asia Samachar, 3 Nov 2016)
The post Ipoh gurdwara lodge police report on alleged vandalism, banner burning appeared first on Asia Samachar.