EDMONTON/CALGARY - Two worshippers were stabbed inside an Edmonton Sikh temple during an early-morning prayer service Friday. Police are investigating the attack as other gurdwaras in Alberta face threatening calls. Edmonton police were called to the Nanaksar Gurdwara in northeast Edmonton shortly after 5 a.m. Two men, aged 51 and 75, were taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries after being stabbed with what police say was possibly a screwdriver. “I guess something must have been bothering him. Or maybe he was in the wrong place, wrong time? I’m really not sure, but an altercation took place,” said Harmeek Sehgal, a volunteer at the Nanaksar Gurdwara. A 27-year-old man, who police say was not a member of the congregation, was arrested at the scene. Police said he was known to them and had been released from a federal institution outside Edmonton the previous day. “He has a significant history of violence offences dating back to 2015,” Acting Insp. Eric Stewart said. Police said the man did not report to his halfway house following his release. He was also taken to hospital after Friday’s incident. Police have not named the suspect and said charges were pending. Investigators are still working to determine what led to the attack and whether it was motivated by hate. Edmonton Mayor Andrew Knack condemned the violence, saying incidents like it affect the entire city. “Incidents like this pose a direct threat to all Edmontonians, negatively impacting residents and the character of our city,” Knack said. “Hate and prejudice and racism have no place in our city.” The stabbing comes during a troubling week for Alberta’s Sikh community, after two temples in Calgary received threatening calls. At the Dashmesh Culture Centre, a threatening call came in on Aug. 15. The caller said heavy equipment was on the way to demolish the Sikh temple while the building was filled with people attending services and community events. Edmonton police said investigators are considering whether Friday’s violence could be connected to the incidents targeting Sikh temples in Calgary. “It’s obviously something that we consider, especially when we start talking about hate crimes,” Edmonton Police Chief Warren Driechel said. Raj Sidhu, a spokesperson for the Dashmesh Culture Centre, said security was increased after the threatening call and stepped up further following Friday’s violence in Edmonton. “We’ve hired a professional security company, more to bring more personnel on site,” Sidhu said. “Once again, it’s to just be vigilant.” Sidhu said the concern within the Sikh community extends beyond physical security. “The social media and comments and just the dialogue and everything that’s been negative towards the Sikh community,” he said. Despite the violence and threats, both temples continued with their activities. Hours after the stabbing in Edmonton, people were once again gathering inside the Nanaksar Gurdwara — this time for a wedding. “I commend them for being able to carry on the way they did today, given the scope of this incident and the potential it could have led to,” Driechel said.
