Tension with India had some Sacramento Sikhs fearing the worst after temple explosion
Bobby Singh was in line at a Dutch Bros. Coffee when he saw smoke rising from the direction of the Sikh house of worship he attends.
Then, his cell phone started buzzing. There had been a series of explosions.
He made a U-turn and sped toward the Gurdwara Sacramento Sikh Society, the largest of nine Sikh places of worship in the Sacramento region, visited by about two thousand Sikhs every week.
“My heart was racing, especially given all the recent events,” Singh said. “ I feared the worst.”
Until a year ago, the building, which was blackened and suffered heavy damage, served daily meals. On weekends, as recently as last Sunday, as many as 200 children attended Sikh education classes there.
“Thank God no one was hurt,” Singh said. “It could have been so much worse.”
The source of ignition that set off a chain-reaction explosion involving at least six large propane tanks is under investigation. Gurdwara officials told The Bee they believe that the incident was an accident.
Nevertheless, several Sikh activists said they want the fire thoroughly investigated. Sikhs worldwide are in the midst of a battle with India over their desire to create an independent Sikh state in Punjab, which would be called Khalistan.
On Sunday, more than 100,000 California Sikhs traveled to San Francisco to cast a non-binding vote on a Sikh independence referendum. Singh, who has been the subject of threats, is a key local activist in the movement.
Gina Swankie, a spokesperson for the Sacramento Field Office of the FBI said, “We are in contact with the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department and Sacramento Metropolitan Fire Department, who are leading the investigation… If, in the course of the local investigation, information comes to light of a potential federal violation, the FBI is prepared to investigate.”
“There’s no reason to believe that this was anything but an accident,” she said. “I think having a measured outlook and response, based on investigative results, is what is prudent right now.“
Singh-Allen said she is in communication with several Elk Grove schools to lend or lease space so that the gurdwara can continue to educate children until they can rebuild.
The Battle for Khalistan
Gurdwaras, the spiritual hubs of the Sikh faith, value inclusiveness, serving meals to anyone in need regardless of race, religion, or sexual orientation. But in recent months, with tensions at perhaps an all-time high between Sikh separatists and the Hindu nationalist government of India, politics are hard to avoid.
Just down the street from the gurdwara, on Bradshaw Road, a billboard promoting the Khalistan referendum shows a pious-looking Sikh underneath an American flag. The billboard declares, “America Votes, The Battle for Khalistan.”
Deep Singh, Executive Director of the Jakara Movement, a Sikh community nonprofit serving 12 counties across California including Sacramento, said he would like to see the FBI take more of a leading role in the investigation of Tuesday’s explosions and fire.
“The increase of suspicious incidents and the frequency of events against Sikhs in the Central Valley, be they in Stockton, Fresno, or recently Sacramento and the lack of information shared by federal law enforcement has many in the Sikh community seeking a thorough investigation, even should it be an accident.”
He added, “We are deeply concerned about India’s transnational repression against the Sikh community. Within the last few months, Indian officials even went so far as murdering a Canadian citizen on Canadian soil and plotting the assassination of U.S. citizens.“
You can’t blame Sacramento activist Bobby Singh for being jittery. In June, his mentor, Hardeep Singh Nijjar was gunned down in Canada outside of a Gurdwara. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced later that evidence pointed to India’s involvement. The Indian government denies any involvement.
Singh has received death threats via a text message and visits of concern from the FBI.
On Sunday, the 24-year-old activist spent much of the day in San Francisco fielding calls about the surge of crowds converging on the San Francisco Civic Center for the referendum vote from a bulletproof-hardened SUV, a safety measure suggested by senior Sikh leaders.
It’s difficult to know just how many Punjabi Sikhs live in California. Previous estimates of 250,000 appear to be low. Organizers of the Khalistan referendum say that 127,000 Sikhs, mostly from California, voted Sunday, with tens of thousands unable to vote because of long lines.
Because of the overflow, a referendum vote is now scheduled for Sacramento on March 31.
FBI Outreach to Sikhs
In November, the U.S. Justice Dept. indicted an individual connected to the government of India in a conspiracy to assassinate a U.S. citizen and Sikh leader of the Khalistan referendum. Earlier this month, following that troubling revelation, the FBI released a public service audio message aimed at addressing transnational repression (TNR).
FBI spokeswoman Swankie explained, “the FBI recently released public service messages regarding transnational repression in Punjabi to ensure the Sikh community is aware of what transnational repression is and how to report it.”
A translated version states, “In our country, America, foreign governments are currently committing transnational repression. To stop this, the FBI needs your help.”
The audio lists several types of TNR. “Surveillance, stalking, harassing, attempting to kidnap or attacking someone physically, and coercively trying to gather intelligence about a community or individual(s) through threats and intimidation.”
Unlike Jewish temples, where deadly attacks have led to security gates and guards, gurdwaras are often open places with little visible security. Elk Grove’s Mayor Singh said, despite concerns about TNR, she doesn’t believe that should change.
“You don’t want to create sort of a prison environment,” she said. “You want to be thoughtful, responsible and responsive. We have partnerships with law enforcement if anything different needs to happen.”
