INDIANAPOLIS: The Hindu Temple of Central Indiana (HTCI) grieved with the families of all those who lost their lives in the Indianapolis Fed-Ex shooting. Four of the eight victims belonged to the Sikh Community, our brothers and sisters from our spiritual homeland and the other four victims were also our brothers and sisters from the fellow Hoosier families.
" This has hit us all especially hard as we put ourselves in the position of these families. We Hindus practice non-violence or Ahimsa and believe that we are all one big family (Vasudaiva Kutumbakam) and share a common divinity".
In a message HTCI Board of Trustees chairman Sathya Thulasiraman said "We empathize with our fellow citizens filled with anger, anxiety and are struggling to find common ground and compassion. We stand with our Sikh brothers and sisters calling for a full investigation of this senseless act of violence.
"Although it is not known if this was motivated by hatred, the Sikh community has been targeted on several occasions and been victims of many acts of violence. We must protect this and all religious communities from any act of violence. No one should feel unsafe either at their homes or their place of work or worship.
"The Hindu Temple of Central Indiana sends its thoughts, prayers, and love to all families and communities affected by this tragedy. We support the efforts to end the scourge of violence in our city. The Indianapolis community is our community, and The Hindu Temple of Central Indiana grieves with all affected by this senseless act."
It may be recalled Amarjit Kaur Sekhon, 48, Jaswinder Kaur, 64, Amarjit Kaur Johal, 66, are the three females and Jaswinder Singh, 68, were those members of the Sikh community who were killed in the mass shooting. Other victims were Karli Smith, 19, R Alexander Matthew, 32, Samaria Blackwell, 19, and John Weisert, 74.