On June 6, two Indian Tricolours were set ablaze and stamped upon by Khalistanis on Trafalgar Square, London, amidst slogans of “Khalistan Zindabad”. The Indian High Commission has issued a statement in which they said they were extremely concerned and distressed by the incident. The High Commission also promised to take action against those who desecrated the Indian National Flag.
As per a report in the Times of India, the Indian High Commission said, “We have taken note of the people who were there trying to desecrate the flag, and we will take action. We were also surprised to see that the LTTE (Tamil Tigers) were present. The numbers who turned up were far less than in previous years, which demonstrates that they are failing to muster enough support for Khalistan, besides the continual failure of the whole movement.”
Naomi Canton, TOI’s journalist from the UK, shared multiple videos of the incident. In the first video, a man with a black scarf covering his face set ablaze the Tricolour that was kept on the floor. Once the flag caught fire, he used a flammable spray to ensure it burnt down to ashes. The bystanders were heard raising slogans like “Khalistan Zindabad” and “Na Hindi, Na Hindu, Na Hindustan, Banke Rahega Khalistan”.
This is the moment a man sets fire to the Tricolour during a rally in Trafalgar Square to mark the anniversary of Operation Blue Star in June 1984 pic.twitter.com/j20U2jceO8
— Naomi Canton (@naomi2009) June 6, 2021
In the second video she shared, the same guy brought the second Tricolour to set it on fire.
This is what happens next. After burning one Indian flag, he burns a second. This happened today in Trafalgar Square during an Operation Blue Star Remembrance Rally. Full story in TOI. pic.twitter.com/RSBObEtM8G
— Naomi Canton (@naomi2009) June 6, 2021
After the flags were gutted, two police officers came over. The masked man who burnt down the flag was seen pouring water over the remnants of the flags. One of the police officers picked up the remaining portion of the flags and left the spot.
This is the moment the police come and stamp the flames out and remove the remnants of the Indian flags which are destroyed. pic.twitter.com/rr7xXD9uzn
— Naomi Canton (@naomi2009) June 7, 2021
Setting flags ablaze is not a crime in Britain, said Police
A spokesperson for Metropolitan Police said in a statement that setting flags on fire is not a criminal offence in Britain. He further added that he was not aware of the flag-burning incident, and no one was arrested from the group of Sikhs raising slogans against India.
The event to remember Khalistani terrorist Bhindranwale
As per reports, Five Khalsa Sikhs dressed in traditional attire of “Paanch Pyare” had led the march of hundreds of Khalistani sympathizers from Wellington Arch to Trafalgar Square. Some people were selling Khalistan T-Shirts etc. Banners donning Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale were seen at the event. A Sikh woman, who was selling the T-shirts, told TOI, “It is important the next generation knows about this.”
Khalistani flags spotted
There were several Khalistanis marching with the yellow Khalistan flags. Some of them were wearing “Punjab Referendum 2020” T-shirts. The so-called Referendum 2020 is an initiative run by banned terrorist organization Sikhs For Justice. It the same organization that had announced a cash prize for raising Khalistani Flag on Red Fort on Republic Day this year.
The protestors were also raising slogans favouring Scottish Sikh Jagtar Singh Johal, who is currently lodged in jail in India for his alleged role in murdering Hindu leaders in Punjab.
