The arrest of 55 people protesting at a Gurdwara in a row over inter-faith marriages in Leamington Spa, Warwickshire, on September 11 has been denounced by British-Sikh groups.
The group of “masked men” carrying weapons (many of which were ceremonial knives) were arrested on suspicion of aggravated trespass, Warwickshire Police confirmed.
The incident at Tachbrook Drive began around 6.45am on Sunday and lasted for eight hours.
The Sikh Federation UK (SFUK) has asked Warwickshire Police to apologise for its “disproportionate” response to reports that a group carrying blades and wearing masks had forced their way into Leamington Gurdwara.
The SFUK said the men had entered the Gurdwara to protest an inter-faith marriage being carried out as a Sikh religious ceremony.
Former treasurer Jatinder Singh Birdi said that a marriage between a Sikh and a non-Sikh was to take place when the men staged the protest against the ceremony.
Warwickshire Police were called to the Sikh temple after after 6.45am on Sunday. They sent armed officers as they believed the 55 men were carrying “bladed items”. Police arrested the 55 men on suspicion of aggravated trespass, seized ceremonial blades and one non-ceremonial weapon.
Superintendent David Gardner said that armed police officers were deployed as a “precaution” due to reports that the protesters were carrying bladed weapons, which were initially not thought to be ceremonial Kirpans carried by Sikh men. He confirmed that the incident had been contained and that it was an “escalation of a local dispute”.
Secretary general of the Sikh Council UK, Gurmail Singh, said the protest took place because the marriage ceremony was reserved for two Sikhs, but an inter-faith marriage was performed in the Gurdwara.
Gurjeet Singh from the Sikh Federation UK said that while a Sikh is free to marry a non-Sikh, he does not believe this should be done through a Sikh religious ceremony in a Gurdwara.
The Sikh Federation UK has also accused the Leamington Gurduwara management of providing “false and fabricated information” to the police to get the marriage protesters arrested.
Two groups Sikh 2 Inspire and Sikh Youth UK said they were merely staging a peaceful protest. They claim the wedding violated a consensus in the community to not allow Gurdwaras to host inter-faith marriages.
There have reportedly been tensions in the community over the last couple of years about permissions being granted to hold inter-faith weddings in the Gurdwara.
The protest and subsequent arrests have reignited a debate among the Sikh community about mixed marriages in Gurdwaras.
The Guardian said it was the third or fourth time in recent months that a group of men had attempted to gain entry into the Gurdwara over the issue of mixed marriages.
The Gurdwara committee’s decision to call the police and the subsequent arrests have sparked sharp reactions on social media. Some have backed the protests on religious grounds, while others strongly objected to disrupting mixed marriages.
photo courtesy: Guardian
