Yuba City Sikh festival kicks off amidst concerns of unverified threats
YUBA CITY – A Sikh festival considered the largest in the United States just kicked off in Yuba City.
Nagar Kirtan is a religious procession celebrating culture and community and they've been celebrating it in Yuba City for 45 years.
With more than 100,000 people expected to attend, there are some concerns of unverified threats.
The Sikh Coalition says organizers have ramped up security efforts to ensure everyone's safety, but they say it's not going to stop them from celebrating.
"I think it's OK for folks, in general, to feel a little nervous in a large crowd anyways, but as somebody who has been attending for over 20 years now, I've never once felt unsafe here," said the senior state policy manager for the Sikh Coalition, Puneet Kaur.
Claims from an unverified document circulating online say Indian organized crime groups were possibly planning a shooting at what's considered the largest Sikh festival in the U.S.
The FBI says they are aware of potential threats of violence involving rival gangs, but they said in a statement, "Although these threats are unverified, we will continue to work closely with our partners to ensure the safety of the community at the event."
"I feel extremely safe here. I think the security has always done their job well. We've been working with local police, I'm not worried at all," said Affiong Inyang with the Sikh Coalition.
"I think we have a lot of different agencies working here, security. People don't have to worry, you know. People just have to only be careful," said festival-goer, Jasvir Singh Sidhu.
The three-day event is volunteer-driven and the food is free and locally donated.
"We're just having fun with it. It's not a job thing, not we have to be here, we want to be here. We're just doing a fun thing, 20 guys chopping onions, cooking stuff up," said volunteer Kamalpreet Singh.
"Come. Come eat with us. We're all one. At the end of the day, we all have stomachs and that should unite us," said Inyang.
They estimate between 100,000 to 200,000 people to come. They can't even count because there aren't any tickets and all are welcome.
"This is not something advertised on social media. There's no link to RSVP to or anything. This is solely word of mouth through community just getting in touch with each other," said Kaur.
"I think a lot of people show up every year just because of how great the sense of community and the support they feel here is," said Upneet Kaur with the Sikh Coalition.
"I'm here 25 years. Every year I come with the family and friends," Sidhu said.
There are still two more days of the event and Sunday will be the parade.