(Image source from: The Himalayan Times) (Representational image)
Hours left for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Howdy Modi’ rally in Houston, where 50,000 Indian Americans, influential leaders, and President Donald Trump, are all geared up to attend, protesters from different organizations are preparing to battle the security arrangements set up for the massive diaspora event and take on thousands of supporters of both the leaders - PM Modi and President Trump.
With tropical storm Imelda triggering a heavy downpour and the threat of flash-floods since Thursday, Houston is expected to witness more incessant rains on Sunday.
The founder of Hindus for Human Rights, a part of a group called the Alliance for Justice and Accountability (AJA) and New York-based activist Sunita Vishwanath, says she will join the groups that will picket Houston’s historic NRG stadium, where the event is slated to take place.
Vishwanath told The Hindu that all of us are of Indian origin and the reason we are motivated to go to Houston to protest is that as people devoted to the secular idea of India, what we see happening in our homeland that we love is worrying.
Also, a number of pro-Kashmir and Khalistani separatist groups, and several Pakistani-American groups have sketched out to protest at the NGR Stadium.
In a statement, the AJA, which includes Hindus for Human Rights, the Indian American Muslim Council, and Organization for Minorities of India led by Sikh-American Pawan Singh, said their coalition is totally distinct from other non-Indian American protesters or those who challenge India’s territorial integrity.
That being so, Indian Embassy officials as part of safety measures have been working round the clock to make sure that none of the protesters is able to interrupt the proceedings. Advance security teams are also put in place.
Apparently, the presence of the Donald Trump at the event along with several other American leaders will ensure heightened security and is expected to deter several American protesters from joining.
The Organizers are also swift and strict measures when they got to know that a Pakistani promoter had reportedly funded a concert by Punjabi singer Diljit Dosanjh on September 21, so as to pull in a bigger crowd of Pakistani supporters to Houston. Subsequently, Dosanjh canceled his concert after a group alerted the Ministry of External Affairs.
On Friday, officials denied concerns over what they called a publicity stunt by Khalistani lawyer-activist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, who secured a summons for PM Modi from the South District Court of Texas over the communication blockage in Jammu and Kashmir, saying such actions are mundane.
The organizing officials also highlighted that while more than 20 United States lawmakers have written letters of criticizing the detentions, internet shutdown and reports of excesses in Jammu and Kashmir, none of them is hoped-for to be at the protests in Houston on Sunday.
By Sowmya Sangam
