A video widely circulating on social media shows British police handcuffing a dying teenager after he was stabbed by an Indian-origin Sikh man who falsely claimed he had been racially abused by the victim.
The victim, 18-year-old Henry Nowak, was in a vulnerable condition and repeatedly tried to tell officers that "I can't breathe".
The attacker, 23-year-old Vickrum Digwa, was carrying a large dagger known as a "kirpan," a ceremonial article of faith in Sikhism.
Digwa used the weapon, a "large dagger" to stab Nowak and was sentenced to life imprisonment on Monday after being found guilty. He will serve a minimum of 20 years before becoming eligible for parole.
When officers from Hampshire Police arrived at the scene, Digwa allegedly misled them by claiming that Nowak had knocked off his turban in a racially motivated attack in Southampton. Based on that account, officers handcuffed the teenager before discovering the severity of his injuries.
In the footage, Nowak can be seen lying on his back as officers grabbed his wrists and attempted to sit him up. He repeatedly told police that he had been stabbed and struggled to breathe.
“You’ve been stabbed? Whereabouts?” one officer is heard asking in the video. “Don’t think you have, mate.”
Following the sentencing hearing, Nowak's father, Mark Nowak, said the tragedy should not be viewed through the lens of race or religion. He said he hoped his son's death would lead to safer streets and would not be used to fuel “further division, hatred or tension”.
The fatal stabbing of 18-year-old Henry Nowak in Southampton last December triggered widespread debate in the UK, including calls from some far-right groups to restrict Sikhs' right to carry the kirpan, a ceremonial article of faith.
Addressing the House of Commons, UK home secretary Shabana Mahmood urged people not to blame the wider Sikh community for the actions of one individual.
"There have been calls to limit the right of Sikhs to carry their ceremonial knife, the kirpan, one of the five holy items in their faith," Mahmood said, referring to demands from some groups for a ban.
She pointed to the UK's Offensive Weapons Act 2019, which she said "clarified and strengthened existing legal protections in relation to long kirpans".
"This included extending defences, so that kirpans can be lawfully possessed for religious reasons and used in religious and ceremonial contexts. But let me be clear, carrying a knife for the purpose of religious observance is one thing, using it as so tragically occurred in this case is quite another. It is a vile act, a crime of the utmost severity, and it will be met with the severest punishment," she said.
Mahmood also warned against allowing the murder to divide communities.
"We do not believe in collective punishment in this country. Instead, we stand together against an act of pure evil. We condemn those who committed this heinous crime, not all those who share their faith or their ethnicity,” she said.
Several Sikh MPs intervened during the debate. Labour MP Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi criticised Reform UK, Restore Britain and other far-right groups for "scapegoating and throwing under the bus an entire community based on the actions of one violent murderer".
"What's very galling is that the likes of Reform, Restore and the far-right decided to politicise people's pain, attacking the Sikh community for wearing the kirpan and wanting it banned, even though the kirpan was not used in this violent attack,” Dhesi said.
He also highlighted the contribution of Sikh soldiers who fought alongside British forces in both World Wars while "wearing their turban and their kirpan", and urged the government to reaffirm the community's right to "freely and peacefully practise their faith".
Labour MP Gurinder Singh Josan expressed his "shock and horror" at the killing and requested a meeting with Mahmood to discuss concerns raised by the case.
"There is simply no religious justification for these actions, a sentiment that is shared universally across the Sikh community. This case has raised many aspects of concern to my constituents, Sikh and non-Sikh, including issues of safety, knife crime and issues of freedom to practice one's faith," he said.
Mahmood said she was open to further discussions with Sikh community representatives to help strike the "right balance between the religious freedoms that he (Josan) and I both enjoy as members of faith minorities in our country, and also the need to make sure that public protection is never compromised".
She also confirmed that the Independent Office for Police Conduct's investigation into the actions of Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary officers at the scene would be carried out transparently.
The debate additionally touched on concerns about "two-tier policing", with some lawmakers questioning whether certain communities receive preferential treatment. Mahmood rejected the suggestion, saying all security forces have a "sacred duty to police without fear or favour".
Meanwhile, the Council of Southampton Gurdwaras issued a statement expressing solidarity with Nowak's family and offering "ardas (prayers)" on behalf of the Sikh community.
"Digwa's actions were in direct contradiction to Sikh teachings and values that have guided Sikh communities for more than five centuries, including in Britain for over 150 years,” the statement said.
During Monday's sentencing hearing, Judge William Mousley stressed that it is the "fundamental principle of Sikhism that any kirpan is worn as a symbol of religious faith and is never to be carried for an offensive purpose".
"You abused the privilege extended to Sikhs to have a knife in a public place for religious reasons, dishonoured your religion and have now put others at risk of repercussions," the judge told Digwa.
Digwa's mother, 53-year-old Kiran Kaur, remains in custody for her role in removing the murder weapon from the crime scene in Portswood, south-east England, shortly after the attack on December 4 last year. She is due to be sentenced on July 17.
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