Dance
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HUNDREDS of people gathered outside the Indian Consulate in Birmingham yesterday to protest against the planned execution of a Sikh radical in India.
Balwant Singh Rajoana has been on death row since being convicted of conspiracy to murder when he and an accomplice, strapped with explosives, targeted the Chief Minister of Punjab, Beant Singh, in 1995 killing him and 17 others.
The campaign to stop his execution has been taken up by Sikhs across the globe in spite of Mr Ranaonas prison cell pleas that he does not want clemency and is happy to face the hangman and die a martyr.
The Birmingham protest, organised by the Sikh community, saw 200 people march from Handsworth to the Indian Consulate in the Jewellery Quarter, where a further 500 protesters were already assembled.
The demonstration passed off peacefully but West Midlands Police said they were aware of some young Sikhs carrying placards bearing the insignia of a banned Sikh terrorist organisation, called Babbar Khalsa. The group had its UK headquarters in Walsall until it was proscribed under the Anti Terror Act in 2001.
A police spokesman said: We are aware of a number of placards which were displayed at the protest.
As is always the case with public demonstrations, consideration will be given to establish whether any criminal offences have been committed and action will be taken in due course where necessary.
Aston University students Danny Singh Bhopal, 23, and Gursher Singh, 21, said they were proud to be displaying the placard, adding that they were showing their support for an independent Sikh homeland called Khalistan.
Danny Singh said: In our eyes Balwant is a freedom fighter who was prepared to die to achieve a separate Sikh homeland for Sikhs.
Most of the people here today are showing their support for Khalistan as much as being here to protest against the death penalty.
His views were echoed by many protesters some of whom chanted Death to India and Long Live Khalistan.
The self-styled President of Khalistan in exile, Mr Amrik Singh Sahota, from Birmingham, was also present and led the chants for an independent Khalistan.
One of his supporters legal clerk Gally Kaur, 35, from Birmingham, said: Im here to support Balwant and to support the creation of Khalistan. Sikhs are being persecuted in India all the time and the only solution is for the Sikhs to carve out their own land.
Another supporter Surinderpal Singh Rai, General Secretary at a Sikh temple in Leicester, said: Most people are here to show solidarity with Balwant and the whole Khalistan movement.
Video: Hundreds protest outside Birmingham's Indian Consulate amid fears of execution - Top Stories - News - Birmingham Mail
Balwant Singh Rajoana has been on death row since being convicted of conspiracy to murder when he and an accomplice, strapped with explosives, targeted the Chief Minister of Punjab, Beant Singh, in 1995 killing him and 17 others.
The campaign to stop his execution has been taken up by Sikhs across the globe in spite of Mr Ranaonas prison cell pleas that he does not want clemency and is happy to face the hangman and die a martyr.
The Birmingham protest, organised by the Sikh community, saw 200 people march from Handsworth to the Indian Consulate in the Jewellery Quarter, where a further 500 protesters were already assembled.
The demonstration passed off peacefully but West Midlands Police said they were aware of some young Sikhs carrying placards bearing the insignia of a banned Sikh terrorist organisation, called Babbar Khalsa. The group had its UK headquarters in Walsall until it was proscribed under the Anti Terror Act in 2001.
A police spokesman said: We are aware of a number of placards which were displayed at the protest.
As is always the case with public demonstrations, consideration will be given to establish whether any criminal offences have been committed and action will be taken in due course where necessary.
Aston University students Danny Singh Bhopal, 23, and Gursher Singh, 21, said they were proud to be displaying the placard, adding that they were showing their support for an independent Sikh homeland called Khalistan.
Danny Singh said: In our eyes Balwant is a freedom fighter who was prepared to die to achieve a separate Sikh homeland for Sikhs.
Most of the people here today are showing their support for Khalistan as much as being here to protest against the death penalty.
His views were echoed by many protesters some of whom chanted Death to India and Long Live Khalistan.
The self-styled President of Khalistan in exile, Mr Amrik Singh Sahota, from Birmingham, was also present and led the chants for an independent Khalistan.
One of his supporters legal clerk Gally Kaur, 35, from Birmingham, said: Im here to support Balwant and to support the creation of Khalistan. Sikhs are being persecuted in India all the time and the only solution is for the Sikhs to carve out their own land.
Another supporter Surinderpal Singh Rai, General Secretary at a Sikh temple in Leicester, said: Most people are here to show solidarity with Balwant and the whole Khalistan movement.
Video: Hundreds protest outside Birmingham's Indian Consulate amid fears of execution - Top Stories - News - Birmingham Mail
