Washington: In another hate crime, a Sikh-owned Indian restaurant in New Mexico’s Sante Fe City was vandalized recently. Hate messages were scrawled on the walls of the restaurant, according to a media report.
Damages worth $100,000 were caused to the ‘Indian Palace’ restaurant, located in a peaceful area. The FBI have initiated a probe.
Condemning the incident, Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund (SALDEF) executive director Kiran Kaur Gill said: “This kind of hate and violence is unacceptable and swift action must be taken to ensure the safety and security of all Americans.”
The local daily reported that tables were overturned and smashed glass was scattered all over the floor. The vandals also destroyed food warmers and devastated the desk area. While ransacking the wine rack, they beheaded a goddess’ idol. They even took away the computers.
“I walked into the kitchen, saw everything and I was like, hold on, what? What is going on here?” restaurant owner Baljit Singh was quoted as saying by the Santa Fe Reporter. ‘White power,’ ‘go home’, ‘ISIS’, ‘Trump 2020,’ and other hate messages were scribbled on the walls and floors of the restaurant.
“Some phrases contained threats of violence and derogatory racial slurs,” said the daily.
