US: People protest in South Carolina over removal of slain militant leader’s portrait from gurdwara

In a shocking development amidst strained diplomatic ties between India and Canada over the death of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, videos from South Carolina, US, have been doing rounds on social media that show alleged protests over the removal of slain militant leader Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale's portrait from a gurdwara.

Bhindranwale was the leader of the Sikh religious sect Damdami Taksal. He, along with his armed followers, were killed during Operation Blue Star which was launched by the Indian Army at the Golden Temple complex to flush out heavily-armed extremists.

In one of the videos circulating on the internet, a man claims that a picture of Bhindranwale, whom he refers to as a martyr, was removed from the langar hall of the gurdwara after alleged voting by the members of the religious committee.

He further goes on to urge other gurdwara member bodies to refrain from implementing such procedures, specifically hinting out at the polling system, and follow the religious norms.

Another video that went viral, the veracity of which cannot be independently verified by WION, purportedly shows people staging a demonstration over the removal of the portrait.

In the video, people can be seen holding slogans that read 'portraits scare away the enemies'.

As per the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), an organisation responsible for management of Sikh places of worship, the ten Gurus of the faith are Guru Nanak, Guru Angad, Guru Amar Das, Guru Ram Das, Guru Arjan Dev, Guru Hargobind, Guru Har Rai, Guru Har Krishan, Guru Tegh Bahadur, Guru Gobind Singh.

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