Shiromani Gurudwara Prabhandhak Committee condemns Gurudwara shooting incident in the US

CHANDIGARH: Condemning the shooting incident at a Gurudwara in the US, the Shiromani Gurudwara Prabhandhak Committee (SGPC), apex religious body of the Sikhs, tonight urged the Prime Minister to take up with authorities there the issue of saftey of the minority community.

"I have learnt about the incident from the media. I have heard that many have been injured in the incident. It is an unfortunate incident, a condemnable criminal act and an attack to capture a religious place of peace loving Sikh community", SGPC President Avtar Singh Makkar said.

He said that SGPC would urge the Prime Minister to take up the matter with the US Government immediately.

"US Government should take strict note of the incident and punish those behind the criminal act. They should also ensure safety and security of the religious places of the Sikh community in US," Makkar said.

He said that the gurudwara were the incident had taken place was about 150 km from Chicago.

The SGPC head said that Sikhs were a peace loving community who had contributed to the US economy.

"In US, you will find doctors, scientists, industrialists and entrepreneurs from the Sikh community," he told PTI.

At least one gunman opened fire at a Gurudwara in Wisconsin during morning prayers today injuring up to 20 people, some seriously, amid reports that children have been taken as hostages.

The shooting at Oak Creek, just south of Wisconsin's biggest city Milwaukee, occurred at around 11 am (local time), the Milwaukee-Wisconsin Journal Sentinel reported. Oak Creek is about 1,250 km from New York.