Sikh separatist attacks on Indian consulates spark condemnation and debate over protest rights.
Sikh separatists affiliated with the Khalistan movement vandalized the Indian High Commission in London and the Consulate General of India in San Francisco, smashing windows and injuring embassy workers. The protesters seek to create a new homeland or breakaway state for Sikhs. The U.S. State Department and local authorities are investigating the incident, while the Indian government has summoned the British Deputy High Commissioner in New Delhi to demand an explanation. The Khalistan movement is banned in India, but still has some support in the state and among the Sikh diaspora in countries like Canada and the United Kingdom.