Explanation given on why no charges were filed following incident at Brampton gurdwara

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Published December 7, 2020 at 2:39 pm

A person with mental health issues was behind the destruction of religious documents at a Brampton gurdwara (a place of worship and assembly for Sikhs).

That has been confirmed following a meeting between leaders in the Sikh community, Mayor Patrick Brown and Peel Police Chief Nishan Duraiappah.

The incident occurred last week when a man went to the Gurdwara Dashmesh Darbar on Ebenezer Rd. near Highway 50 and managed to obtain the Gutka Sahib, printed religious scriptures. The man then took the document outside and tore out several of the pages.

After initially looking into the act as a hate crime, police on Saturday “concluded” their investigation saying although the man had been identified, no charges would be filed. Police added no further information.

However, the act shocked many in the community and a further explanation was demanded. That came yesterday (Dec. 6) when the meeting between the police and local officials occurred.

A statement released by the Ontario Sikhs and Gurdwara Council (OSGC) and the Ontario Gurdwara Committee (OGC), said it was satisfied with the outcome of the investigation, but pushed for assurances that it wouldn’t happen again.

Amarjit Singh Mann, a spokesperson for the OGC said the way the police investigation abruptly ended puzzled the Sikh community, especially since it was initially reported as a hate crime.

He hopes there will be more answers to come.

“The police are working on it, and we are sure they will do their best,” said Mann. “But the community is watching and we want to make sure this wasn’t a hate crime. Maybe this person’s family should come forward to explain what happened. In the meantime we are telling the community to be patient; we still want some more answers and want to make sure this won’t happen again, so the issue may not be over.”

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