US security officials visit gurdwaras in New York, New Jersey to check presence of illegal immigrants

Donald Trump was recently sworn in as the 47th President of the United States

Law enforcement officials from the US Department of Homeland Security have started visiting gurdwaras in New York and New Jersey to check for the presence of illegal immigrants, drawing a sharp reaction from some Sikh organisations which see such actions as a threat to the sanctity of their faith.

Some of the gurdwaras in New York and New Jersey are believed to be used as a hub by Sikh separatists along with illegal and undocumented immigrants.

Within hours of Donald Trump being sworn in as the 47th President of the United States, acting Department of Homeland Security Secretary Benjamine Huffman in a directive rescinded the Biden administration’s guidelines for the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) enforcement actions that thwart law enforcement in or near so-called “sensitive” areas.

These “sensitive” areas included places of worship like gurdwaras and churches.

“This action empowers the brave men and women in CBP and ICE to enforce our immigration laws and catch criminal aliens— including murderers and rapists—who have illegally come into our country,” a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security said.

“Criminals will no longer be able to hide in America’s schools and churches to avoid arrest. The Trump administration will not tie the hands of our brave law enforcement, and instead trusts them to use common sense,” the spokesperson said.

In a statement, the Sikh American Legal Defence and Education Fund (SALDF) expressed grave concern over the directive rescinding the guidelines that designated “sensitive areas”, such as houses of worship, where immigration enforcement actions were previously restricted. "This troubling shift in policy comes in tandem with community reports of DHS agents visiting gurdwaras in the New York and New Jersey areas just days after the directive was issued," SALDF said.