UK Sikhs react to random “hate crime” attack in Slough

UPDATE (01.12.23): Sevadaars (selfless servants) supporting Inderjit Singh have confirmed that the attack against him is now being investigated as a hate crime by police.

Last Tuesday (21.11.2023) a 58-year-old Sikh man was attacked and hospitalised in what local groups are calling an anti-Sikh hate crime by a group of teenage boys in a Slough Park.

Inderjit Singh was walking in Langley Memorial Park after work at around 7pm. Still in his work clothes, he was approached by a group of white teenage boys just outside the park. Slough, is a large urban town in South East England, just outside of West London. Slough has a significant Sikh community, which has been in the town among wider Asian communities for decades.

The incident saw one teen grab Inderjit Singh’s beardly randomly. After Singh pushed him away, another teen then kicked him whilst someone else approached him from behind, grabbing Singh’s coat and pulling him to the ground. The boys then circled him and kicked him on the ground. They kicked his head, but Singh was protected by his dastar (Sikh turban). The attackers were aged 13-16 and all white.

Singh sustained three broken ribs and swelling and cuts to his hands.

The police have informed Singh that they cannot obtain any video footage of the attack, but local Sikhs, including Inderjit Singh’s son, went to the shops near where the incident happened, asking for CCTV footage after this. He was told by the shop keepers that the police had not even asked for any of the footage, and that the perpetrators are always hanging around by the shops.

In a video with West London based Sikh run community group AK Media, Singh explained the attack and made an appeal to the Sikh community. Watch it here. Various Sikh community groups have come together to begin patrols in the area to look into the issue and prevent any further anti-Sikh attacks.

Singh believes the attack to be racially motivated, and has stressed the insistence of his attackers on grabbing his beard, a religious symbol for Sikhs.

Singh made an appeal to both the Sikh community and the Slough community, talking about how the park is used by children and how communities need to come together to ensure that it is a safe space.

There has been a notable increase in anti-Sikh hate crime in the UK as well as in North America, particularly in the past year.

Read: https://www.sikhpa.com/anti-sikh-hate-crimes-breakout-across-usa/ and https://www.sikhpa.com/elderly-sikh-beaten-to-death-in-latest-new-york-anti-sikh-attack/

With this unprovoked attack of Singh suspected to be racially motivated, Sikh groups are calling for more action from police, who are appealing to any members of the public who may have witnessed the assault to get in touch with Thames Valley Police.