White House officials meet Sikh activists before PM Modi's US visit
Washington (PTI): White House officials have met a group of Sikh activists to assure them that the US government is committed to protecting Americans from any acts of transnational aggression on its soil, a community leader has said.
The meeting comes ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's three-day visit to the US during which he will attend the Quad summit in Delaware and address the 'Summit of the Future' at the UN General Assembly in New York.
Held inside the White House complex on Thursday, the meeting was attended by Pritpal Singh of the American Sikh Caucus Committee and representatives from the Sikh Coalition and Sikh American Legal Defence and Education Fund (SALDEF).
“Yesterday we had the chance to thank senior federal government officials for saving the lives of Sikh Americans and for vigilance in protecting our community. We asked them to do more, and we will hold them to their assurances that they will,” Pritpal Singh, founder of the American Sikh Caucus Committee told PTI on Friday.
In a social media post on X on Friday, Singh thanked the US officials for their vigilance in protecting Sikh Americans. “
"We will hold them to their assurances to do more to safeguard our community. Freedom and justice must prevail,” he said.
This is the first time that the National Security Council has held a meeting with these Sikh activists and Sikh separatists. No other details of the meeting were available.
The meeting was initiated by the White House.
Congressman Adam Schiff early this week introduced the Transnational Repression Reporting Act of 2024 which would require the Attorney General, in coordination with other relevant federal agencies, to report cases of transnational repression against people in the US.
“Through this bill, Congress sends a strong message to both allies and adversaries that violating the constitutional rights of Americans will not be tolerated,” SALDEF said.
Earlier this week, Khalistani separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun filed a civil lawsuit against the Government of India and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval after which the US District Court for the Southern District of New York issued summons in the case.
The lawsuit has been filed against the Government of India and Doval and Nikhil Gupta, who has been charged by federal prosecutors in an indictment unsealed in November last year with working with an Indian government employee in the foiled plot to kill Pannun.
Pannun holds dual US and Canadian citizenship, on American soil.
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CM Siddaramaiah alleges ‘criminal conspiracy’ in Sringeri recount, vows legal action
Bengaluru (PTI): Alleging a “criminal conspiracy” by BJP candidate D N Jeevaraj in the Sringeri Assembly poll recounting, Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said the outcome was manipulated after valid postal ballot votes in favour of Congress leader T D Raje Gowda were tampered with during the recounting process.
Following a Karnataka High Court order on an election petition filed by Jeevaraj, challenging Raje Gowda’s election, the reverification and recounting were conducted on Saturday.
After the reverification and recount of postal ballots for the Sringeri Assembly constituency, votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda were reduced by 255, the returning officer said.
A report on the matter has been submitted to the Election Commission of India for further action, the officer added.
Congress leader Raje Gowda had won the 2023 Assembly polls from Sringeri by 201 votes, defeating his nearest rival Jeevaraj.
Addressing a press conference in Bengaluru, Siddaramaiah said the High Court had directed the recounting of postal ballots and that irregularities were noticed during the exercise conducted on May 2.
“This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” Siddaramaiah said, alleging that valid votes cast in favour of Raje Gowda were altered after being accepted by counting agents of all parties, including Congress, BJP, and JD(S).
He claimed that during the recounting of postal ballots, 255 votes were initially accepted as valid by all agents but were later tampered with by subordinate officials.
“There is a second mark on the votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda. They had accepted these as valid votes. Subsequently, another mark was made by officials. This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” he said.
When asked who was behind the alleged conspiracy, the CM replied, “It was hatched by Jeevaraj and others. It is planned.”
Siddaramaiah further alleged that the returning officer acted improperly by declaring the result despite the presence of an Election Commission observer during the recounting.
“Immediately after the counting, the returning officer announced the result. He should not have done so; this is against the law,” he said.
He pointed out that Raje Gowda had originally won by 201 votes, but after the recounting, the BJP candidate was declared the winner by 52 votes.
“The BJP has committed a criminal act of conspiracy. This is not vote chori but vote dacoity,” he alleged.
The CM said a police complaint had already been filed by Raje Gowda’s election agent, Sudhir Kumar, and emphasised the need for electoral integrity.
“We want transparency and free and fair elections. That is what our Constitution mandates,” he added.
Stating that the government would pursue legal remedies, Siddaramaiah said, “We are preparing an appeal challenging the returning officer’s announcement in a court of law.”
Responding to a separate query on elections in other states, the CM said there appeared to be an anti-incumbency factor in West Bengal, while results in Tamil Nadu were “surprising,” adding that Vijay’s party was emerging as the largest there.
Following the victory of party candidates in Bagalkote and Davanagere South, Siddaramaiah expressed confidence about future electoral prospects in Karnataka.
“Even in 2028, we will win the Assembly elections. We will come back,” the CM said.
Siddaramaiah added that he would order a forensic examination into the alleged tampering of postal ballots.
