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Correspondent

21 August 2024 at 10:20:16 am

Hostile Havens

The murder of 24-year-old Kirandeep Kaur in west London is, first and foremost, a personal tragedy. A young Sikh woman from Punjab, who had moved to Britain in search of opportunity, was killed only weeks after giving birth. But her death has unfolded against a darker backdrop. Britain is witnessing an unsettling rise in anti-Sikh hostility, fuelled by the toxic convergence of identity politics, social media outrage and far-right mobilisation. A survey by the Sikh Network found that 40...

Hostile Havens

The murder of 24-year-old Kirandeep Kaur in west London is, first and foremost, a personal tragedy. A young Sikh woman from Punjab, who had moved to Britain in search of opportunity, was killed only weeks after giving birth. But her death has unfolded against a darker backdrop. Britain is witnessing an unsettling rise in anti-Sikh hostility, fuelled by the toxic convergence of identity politics, social media outrage and far-right mobilisation. A survey by the Sikh Network found that 40 percent of Sikhs questioned had either experienced or witnessed anti-Sikh incidents since mid-May, while nearly 90 percent believed hostility towards the community had increased. Britain has long prided itself on being a successful multicultural society. That confidence now looks increasingly fragile. The immediate trigger was the murder of 18-year-old Henry Nowak, allegedly by a Sikh man. Sikh organisations did precisely what responsible community bodies should do. They condemned the killing unequivocally and rejected any attempt to justify the crime. Yet reason was soon overtaken by rage. Far-right agitators seized upon the case, organising demonstrations outside police stations, marching through mixed neighbourhoods, and directing hostility towards Sikh families who had nothing to do with the crime. Nazi salutes and cries of “white power” were ugly reminders that the target had shifted from an individual suspect to an entire community. For Sikhs in Britain, this should prompt an uncomfortable reckoning. For decades, sections of the diaspora have believed that Western democracies offered not merely refuge but also political patronage for causes that found little acceptance in India. Britain and Canada became fertile ground for pro-Khalistan activism, often justified under the broad protections of free speech. Governments tolerated it, sometimes because it suited domestic electoral calculations, sometimes because it cost little politically. Kirandeep Kaur’s murder and the wave of far-right mobilisation is a reminder that Western democracies are guided not by sentiment but by political convenience. When their public moods turn, minorities invariably pay the price. Diaspora communities, however prosperous, remain minorities whose security ultimately depends on the health of the societies in which they live. British authorities must pursue hate crimes with the same vigour they apply to every other form of extremism. Equal citizenship demands nothing less. Yet the Sikh diaspora, too, would do well to reassess its political priorities. Romanticising separatist politics from thousands of kilometres away has brought little benefit to Sikhs either in India or abroad. It has instead provided easy ammunition to extremists of every persuasion instead. Britain and Canada may be liberal democracies in name, but they are not custodians of Sikh interests. Their governments will always act according to their own domestic calculations. Diaspora communities like the Sikhs risk discovering, in moments of crisis, that they have confused convenience with conviction. That is a costly illusion.

India working on logistics of Tahawwur Rana's extradition

  • PTI
  • Feb 14, 2025
  • 3 min read

Updated: Feb 18, 2025

Tahawwur Rana

Washington: India is working on the logistics of Tahawwur Rana's surrender and extradition from the US, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri has said, as President Donald Trump announced that his administration has given the go-ahead to extradite the 26/11 terror attack accused “to face justice".

“This is an issue on which the US authorities have taken very clear decisions. I think you've seen the President announce it himself from the White House podium" the decision of the US to extradite Rana, Misri said at a press conference here on Thursday.


During a joint press conference with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the White House, US President Donald Trump announced that his administration has approved the extradition of "very evil" Tahawwur Rana, wanted by Indian law enforcement agencies for his role in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, "to face justice in India”.


In response to a question by PTI on the timeframe by when Rana will be extradited to India, Misri said: "We are working on the logistics of his surrender and extradition to India. There are a few final steps to be completed. The two sides are in touch on this particular issue.”


The India-US joint statement issued during the Prime Minister's visit to the US notes that Modi and Trump reaffirmed that the global scourge of terrorism must be fought and terrorist safe havens eliminated from every corner of the world.

“They committed to strengthen cooperation against terrorist threats from groups, including Al-Qaeda, ISIS, Jaish-e Mohammad, and Lashkar-e-Tayyiba in order to prevent heinous acts like the attacks in Mumbai on 26/11 and the Abbey Gate bombing in Afghanistan on August 26, 2021," the joint statement said.


“Recognising a shared desire to bring to justice those who would harm our citizens, the US announced that the extradition to India of Tahawwur Rana has been approved," it said.


The leaders further called on Pakistan to expeditiously bring to justice the perpetrators of the 26/11 Mumbai, and Pathankot attacks and ensure that its territory is not used to carry out cross-border terrorist attacks.

"The leaders also pledged to work together to prevent the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and their delivery systems and to deny access to such weapons by terrorists and non-state actors,” the joint statement added.

Rana, a Canadian national of Pakistani origin, is currently lodged at a metropolitan detention centre in Los Angeles. He is known to be associated with Pakistani-American terrorist David Coleman Headley, one of the main conspirators of the 26/11 attacks.

Speaking at the joint press meet, Trump said "Today I am pleased to announce that my administration has approved the extradition of one of the plotters and very evil people of the world, and having to do with the horrific Mumbai terrorist attack, to face justice in India. So, he is going back to India to face justice."


The extradition of Rana was cleared by the US Supreme Court in January as it rejected his review petition in the case.


India last month said it was working with American authorities for the early extradition of Rana.


"The US Supreme Court on January 21 declined to hear a petition from the accused. We are now working with the US side on procedural issues for early extradition to India of the accused in the Mumbai terror attack," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal had said.


In November 2012, Ajmal Amir Kasab, the lone surviving gunman among the Pakistani group, was hanged to death in Yerawada Jail in Pune.

-PTI

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