Amritsar: The American Sikh Council (ASC) has opposed calls in the UK to ban the kirpan following the conviction of a Sikh man for fatally stabbing an 18-year-old student in Southampton, saying an entire faith cannot be blamed for the actions of one individual.The demand, first raised in June, has resurfaced ahead of the July 17 sentencing of the convict’s mother, who was found guilty of concealing the weapon used in the murder.Kiran Kaur, 53, was convicted of attempting to conceal the blade used by her son, Vickrum Digwa, 23, in the murder of Henry Nowak. Digwa has been sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 21 years. According to UK media reports, he was carrying both a Persian dagger and a kirpan at the time of the attack.Police said Digwa fatally stabbed Nowak with a 21-cm Persian dagger on Dec 3 last year as the teenager was walking home after a night out with friends in Southampton. Digwa initially claimed he had been racially abused, his turban had been knocked off and he acted in self-defence, but investigators found those claims to be false.According to police, Digwa handed the murder weapon to his mother after the attack, and she concealed it at their home, where officers also recovered more than 20 other weapons.In a statement, the American Sikh Council said attempts to link the crime with the Sikh faith or justify restrictions on the kirpan were “deeply misplaced”. It said the murder weapon was a Persian dagger, not the kirpan carried by the accused.Describing the kirpan as a sacred religious article symbolising justice, compassion and the duty to protect the vulnerable, the council said millions of Sikhs have carried it responsibly for generations.The council also cited reports presented during the trial that Digwa had a history of behavioural and mental health issues and had reportedly been barred from his local gurdwara because of repeated confrontations. It urged authorities not to allow the actions of “one disturbed person” to undermine the religious freedoms of the Sikh community.
