Free Republic

This is the moment a student dying from a 7cm stab wound to his chest is handcuffed by police. In body-worn camera footage, Henry Nowak says ‘I can’t breathe’ as police officers handcuff him. Weapons-obsessed killer Vickrum Digwa, 23, can be heard telling officers he was the victim with a swollen eye and insists his victim wasn’t stabbed. Nowak, dying in a pool of blood on the drive of a Hampshire home, can be heard calling out ‘I’ve been stabbed’ three times before an officer replies ‘You’ve been stabbed? Whereabouts? I don’t think you have mate’. He is placed into...

@BasilTheGreat The Sikh community have made a statement condemning the murder of Henry Nowak by one of their own

A Sikh man accused of the murder of a first-year university student has told a court that he had acted in self-defence after the teenager had racially abused him and knocked his hair out of his turban before grabbing it. Vickrum Digwa is on trial at Southampton Crown Court charged with the murder of 18-year-old Henry Nowak, from Chafford Hundred, Essex, in Belmont Road in Southampton, on December 3 2025. The 23-year-old is also charged with carrying a knife in public and his mother, Kiran Kaur, 53, is accused of assisting an offender by removing a weapon from the scene....

A university student died after being repeatedly stabbed by a man armed with a Sikh ceremonial sword, a court heard. Finance student Henry Nowak, 18, was on his way home from a night out when he was allegedly attacked by stranger Vikrum Digwa, 23, with the eight inch 'Shastar' blade. Digwa was caught on camera saying 'I am a bad man' before the fatal attack, jurors were told. He is now on trial accused of murder alongside his mother Kiran Kaur, 53, who is accused of assisting an offender. Prosecutors said she went to the scene before running home with...

On this Special Report, Anisha Mathur and Pranay Upadhyay discuss a horrific grooming gang incident in London's Hounslow area. A 15-year-old Sikh girl was allegedly abducted, stalked, and abused by a gang of six Pakistani-origin men. The situation escalated when approximately 200 members of the Sikh community took matters into their own hands to rescue the child from a flat after claiming police inaction. Anisha Mathur notes that the girl was 'stalked, trapped and raped and on camera' while community members confronted the accused. The programme highlights the outrage within the Sikh community over the recurring nature of such crimes...

A 21-year-old Indian truck driver, Jashanpreet Singh, accused of causing an eight-vehicle crash in Southern California that killed three people, appeared in a US court without his turban—sparking outrage in India. Many, including Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal, demanded that his turban be returned. A petition has also been launched, describing Singh's bareheaded court appearance as "a violation of Sikh faith" and urging authorities to "restore his religious rights and ensure a fair trial." -snip- Former Deputy Chief Minister of Punjab, Sukhbir Singh Badal, in a post on X, said he met the family of the accused,...

A trucker for a company called "Sandhu," a common Punjabi name in India among Sikhs, killed three people in Ontario, California, after barreling into a line of stopped traffic. The 21-year-old driver was reportedly on drugs at the time of the crash. [Warning: Graphic] VIDEO AT LINK.................. The reason we have to emphasize that this man was driving for a company with a Punjabi logo is because California authorities won't release any details about the man. The 21 year old driver of this big rig slammed full speed into several vehicles, killing three and injuring several others on a California...

A deadly crash in Florida involving 0:03 Harendir Singh, an illegal immigrant and 0:06 a truck driver originally from India has 0:09 stirred tensions throughout the state. 0:11 Members of the SEK community now say the 0:13 incident is being exploited to single 0:15 out their community and to spread 0:17 negative sentiments against Sikhs. on 0:20 August 12th, saying a truck driver 0:22 originally from India who entered the 0:24 United States illegally made an illegal 0:27 U-turn on the Florida Turnpike, which 0:30 authorities say triggered a crash that 0:32 killed three people. The U-turn caused 0:34 Singh's...

More than 215,000 Indians have signed an online petition urging the federal government to free Harjinder Singh, the illegal migrant trucker who killed three Americans by doing an 18-wheeler U-Turn on a Florida turnpike. “We, the undersigned, respectfully petition for clemency or sentence reduction on behalf of a 28-year-old Punjabi man who, in a tragic and unintentional incident, caused a truck accident that resulted in the loss of three lives,” says the petition at Change.org. Instead of a prison sentence, the petition asks their fellow Indian be sentenced to “restorative justice measures, counseling, or community service, aligning with both accountability...

London -- Keir Starmer hailed the contributions of British Sikhs across all walks of life in the UK in his Baisakhi greetings from 10 Downing Street on Sunday. Having hosted a special reception earlier this week to mark the festival symbolising the birth of the Khalsa, Starmer posted a video on social media showcasing the festivities along with his Baisakhi message. “It’s really fantastic to be able to come together and to celebrate the contribution of British Sikhs to our nation, and what a contribution that is and has been and will be into the future,” said Starmer. “From across...

TOI Correspondent from London: A massive fire erupted at a food stall during the Baisakhi Nagar Kirtan procession in west London's Southall district on Sunday, injuring several people and forcing organisers to cancel the high-profile Sikh community event. The blaze broke out at about 12.45 pm on South Road — the main route for the annual religious procession — when a canvas food stall caught fire, igniting several propane gas canisters inside. Videos from the scene showed towering flames, panicked worshippers fleeing, and volunteers moving gas cylinders away desperately to prevent further explosions. Seven individuals suffered burn injuries, according to...

Malik was shot several times in his car outside his family business in Surrey, in the Canadian province of British Columbia, on the morning of 14 July 2022. Police found a burnt-out vehicle nearby. Prosecutor Matthew Stacey told the court that Fox and Lopez planned a "deliberate killing" of Malik. "They were financially compensated for killing him," he added. The killing happened more than a decade after Malik was acquitted in the devastating double bomb attack - Canada's deadliest terrorist attack in history. On 23 June 1985, Air India flight 182 from Canada to India blew up off the Irish...

After targeting India, Khalistan extremists and separatists in Canada have found a new enemy - White Canadians. A video, reportedly shot by an alleged Khalistan sympathiser, has gone viral on social media in which an extremist can be heard calling Canadians "invaders" and asking them to “go back to England and Europe”. The two-minute clip was reportedly shot during a 'Nagar Kirtan' procession in the Surrey area of Canada's British Columbia. It shows several people slowly marching in one direction as songs are played in the background. Several men can also be seen waving so-called Khalistan flags in the video....

A Walmart store in eastern Canada was closed for a third day Tuesday as police investigated the death of a woman whose body was found inside an oven. Halifax Nova Scotia Regional Police said in a release that they were called at 9:30 p.m. Saturday to the store, where the 19-year-old woman was found dead inside a walk-in oven in the bakery department, KTLA sister station KSNW reports. Police said they haven’t yet confirmed the cause and manner of death of the woman, who worked at the store, nor has her name been released. However, the CBC reports that the...

In Lebanon Hezbollah says it's transitioning to 'a new and escalatory phase' in the conflict with Israel... A judge in Texas agreeing to a request from state legislators to pause the execution of Robert Roberson... US federal charges against a former Indian intelligence officer over an alleged assassination plot involving a Sikh... Russian Aerospace Forces continuing attacks in Syria on jihadists... The United States sanctioning two Chinese companies along with a Russian company and its leader...linked to... Five Israeli soldiers killed, three others seriously wounded in fighting with Hezbollah... A 52-page report saying the United States Secret Service has "deep...

On this date in 1716, legendary Sikh warrior Banda Singh Bahadur attained his martyrdom. Born Lakshman Dev, the man who would become Banda Bahadur went on a spiritual wandering jag as a young man and chanced to be plucked out of hermitage by Sikh guru Gobind Singh. When this guru’s efforts to make inroads for Sikh interests with the new Mughal Emperor Bahadur Shah foundered, the converted hermit (now returned to the martial exercises of his caste) was tasked with a punitive expedition against one of the more obnoxious governors. The zealous general did his mentor one better, attracting thousands...

Canadian police on Friday made arrests linked to the murder of Sikh separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar in the province of British Columbia in June 2023, a source directly familiar with the matter said. The source, who requested anonymity given the sensitivity of the case, said the Royal Canadian Mounted Police would brief media later on Friday. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced in September that Canadian authorities were pursuing allegations linking Indian government agents to the fatal shooting of Nijjar, a Canadian citizen. New Delhi rejected Trudeau's claim as "absurd." The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation earlier said the RCMP had arrested...

New York -- The Sikh turban does not mean terrorism but symbolises faith, New York City Mayor Eric Adams said, as he described the recent attacks and hate crimes against the community as a “stain” on the country and vowed to protect its members. He also gave a clarion call for educating people about Sikhism. “You are not about terror; you are about protector. That is what needs to be taught throughout this entire city. Our young people need to know that, our adults need to know that,” Adams said while addressing members of the Sikh community at the Baba...

New York -- The US is “deeply concerned” about the allegations raised by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau against India on the killing of a Khalistani separatist in Canada, Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said and Washington was "closely coordinating" with Ottawa on the issue and wants to see "accountability" in the case. Speaking at a press conference here on Friday, Blinken said the US has engaged directly with the Indian government on the issue and the most productive thing would be the completion of this investigation. “Let me say a few things about this. First, we are deeply...

India on Thursday suspended new visas for Canadians and asked Ottawa to reduce its diplomatic presence in the country, sharply escalating a spat triggered by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's accusations linking New Delhi to a Sikh separatist's murder. The Indian foreign ministry said Canada has not shared any specific information in connection with the allegations Trudeau made and that New Delhi was willing to look at it if provided. A blanket suspension of new visas by India for a Western country is unheard of and marks the lowest point of India-Canada relations. The announcement came hours after Canada's high commission...