Sikh bodies applaud US lawmakers for supporting farmers’ protests in Delhi

U.S.-based Sikh bodies thanked U.S. lawmakers for showing compassion for farmers protesting in Delhi. Dr Pritpal Singh and Jaswant Singh Hothi of the American Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee thanked US Congressmen for taking up the subject.
Dr Pritpal Singh said that a joint letter, written by U.S. Congressmen John Garamendi, Jin Costa and Sheila Jackson Lee, to the U.S. Ambassador of India, Taranjit Singh Sandhu, led to ongoing farmers’ protests in India.
The Congressmen, he added, suggested in their letter that they were extremely concerned about the response of the Government of India to these protests.
The Congressmen, according to Dr Pritpal Singh, say in the letter that that “they have been distressed this year to see actions by the Indian government that have restricted these rights for many Indians; not only for farmers, but also for religious minorities, and human rights organizations”.
Congressmen, who are also members of the American Sikh Congressional Caucus, told Ambassador Sandhu that many of these farmers have children, relatives and friends who are American citizens, many of whom have come to them to express their concerns about these developments.
Harpreet Singh Sandhu, a member of the Friends of the American Sikh Congressional Caucus Committee, thanked the U.S. Congressmen and said We are grateful to the U.S. Congressmen for being the voice of the Punjab farmers who are at a peaceful demonstration trying to save their land and the lives of their families from the clutches of corporate houses that would become more strong after the recent intrusion.
Another influential Sikh body in the US the East Coast Sikh Coordination Committee, also thanked the Congressmen and asked the US legislature to take up the matter in the US Parliament.
“Congressmen, in strong words, have conveyed to the Indian Ambassador that they urge India to demonstrate a model of democratic values while at the same time dealing with farmers who are peacefully demonstrating for their right says the letter, a copy of which is also available to The Indian Express.
The letter further says that a respect for the rights of freedom of assembly, freedom of the press, and a thriving civil society are core components of a functioning democracy and we must acknowledge that we have also struggled at times in the United States to live up to the ideals of a just, democratic society, but we continue to strive toward it.