More than 50 men, some carrying blades, entered Gurdwara temple to stop wedding between Sikh bride and Hindu groom

Armed officers were called to a Sikh temple in Leamington Spa on Sunday morning after more than 50 men, some carrying blades, entered the building to stop an interfaith marriage service.

For around eight hours, the group, described by a trustee of the Gurdwara temple as “fanatical extremists”, occupied the foyer, forcing the postponement of a wedding between a Sikh bride and a Hindu groom that had been scheduled for Sunday.

By 4pm Warwickshire police had arrested 55 intruders on suspicion of aggravated trespass. “At this time we believe that it is an escalation of an ongoing local dispute,” a police spokesman said.

“A significant number of bladed weapons were seized from the scene,” said Supt David Gardner. “As a result of reports that the men were in possession of these weapons we deployed armed officers as a precaution. Nobody was injured in the incident. Over the coming days we will be working with the local Sikh community to address some of the ongoing issues that have culminated in today’s events.”

All but one of the weapons seized so far have been kirpans, ceremonial blades which it is often considered legal for Sikhs to carry in public, Warwickshire police said. Police are investigating initial reports about the involvement of other bladed weapons.

It was the third or fourth time in recent months that a group of men had attempted to gain entry to the Gurdwara over the issue of mixed marriages. On previous occasions they were resisted by temple security staff, according a trustee of the Gurdwara.

He told the Guardian the intruders were carrying ceremonial Sikh blades and other knives and occupied the temple reception area. At the time a routine early morning religious service was under way attended by several dozen worshippers.

“They pushed around a couple of people, grabbed a tie, grabbed someone’s phone and they were trying to threaten people,” claimed the trustee, who asked not to be named. “People were scared. When a normal person goes to the Gurdwara they go to pray and be at peace. People are really, really annoyed with them.”

Footage of a group of around 20 men clad in black, wearing hoods, hats and orange bandanas, sitting cross-legged and chanting a prayer appeared on Facebook and purported to show the intruders protesting inside the Gurdwara. One of the men held up a placard that read: “Stop violating Sikh principles for money!!”

One supporter of the group on Facebook described it as a peaceful protest.

The purpose-built £11m Gurdwara opened in 2009 to serve a local congregation of around 4,000 Sikhs.

Warwickshire police said in a statement: “The report was received at 6.47am after a group of between 20 and 30 men entered the temple. We believe that some of the men are in possession of bladed items and as such armed officers have been deployed to the scene.

“Officers are inside the temple to negotiate a peaceful resolution. There are also religious leaders in the temple working with officers to negotiate a peaceful resolution. There are police cordons in place around the temple and we would ask that people avoid the immediate area while the incident is resolved.”

Jaswat Videe, another Gurdwara trustee, said the intruders were “absolutely wrong” to think that Sikhism prohibits interfaith marriage.

“Scripture doesn’t discriminate between anyone,” he said. “The Guru says every citizen in the world is equal.”

He also dismissed any suggestion that the temple authorities were allowing interfaith marriages to raise money, saying that the Gurdwara does not charge for weddings and relies on donations.