SFJ Hacks Police Website, Threatens Attacks; AAP Calls for Excommunication

On 8 Apr, Sikhs for Justice (SFJ) hacked the Panjab police’s armed wing website, displaying a Liberate Punjab from Indian Occupation poster. A week later the website is still under maintenance. After the defacing of the casing of Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar statue at Nangal village near Phillaur on 31 Mar, SFJ escalated tensions by threatening grenade attacks if Panjab, Haryana, and Himachal Pradesh commemorated Ambedkar’s birth anniversary on 14 Apr. SFJ also released a video showing vandalism at an Ambedkar Housing Society in Sahibzada Ajit Singh Nagar. Though the police found no physical evidence of damage, calling the video a provocation designed to disrupt communal harmony. However, from the propaganda it is clear that SFJ is trying to create differences between Sikhs and the Dalit (Scheduled Caste) community who highly revere Ambedkar. The Panch Pardhani Panthak Jatha stressed that Dr Ambedkar’s legacy deserves respect and reaffirmed the Khalistan movement’s objective of forging a just society is consistent with Sikh tenets. Law enforcement agencies intensified vigilance in Mohali, Chandigarh, and beyond, safeguarding Ambedkar statues. Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) Fauja Singh Sarari, Ranbir Singh Bhullar, Rajnish Kumar Dahiya, and Naresh Kataria lambasted SFJ legal counsel and Khalistan advocate Gurpatwant Singh Pannun for stirring conflict and profiteering from hatred, urging Sikh organizations to excommunicate Pannun from the Panth (Sikh Collective). It is ironic that given the malgovernance of Panjab, AAP leaders once again pledged to celebrate Ambedkar’s birth anniversary across Panjab, emphasizing interfaith unity. It must be noted that despite SFJ’s advocacy on Sikh matters, the group remained silent on the recent deportation of Sikhs from the US via military aircraft—the migrants were handcuffed and their turbans removed. This shows SFJ’s selective activism and focus on high-profile controversies, and how the group ignores issues where powers other than India are involved (earlier coverage).