Post office to be named after slain Sikh cop

THE post office at 315 Addicks Howell Road is set to be renamed after slain Sikh police officer Sandeep Singh Dhaliwal with the US Congress passing the necessary legislation.

Dhaliwal was gunned down in the line of duty during a routine traffic stop on September 27, 2019.

The post office will be renamed as ‘Deputy Sandeep Singh Dhaliwal Post Office Building’. The bill to rename the building is now on its way to the White House for President Donald Trump to sign it into law.

In 2015, Dhaliwal became the first Sikh American in Texas to receive a policy accommodation to serve with his articles of faith, including turban and beard.

India born, Dhaliwal moved to the US along with his parents to Houston where he grew deep roots.

The first Sikh police officer to serve in the Harris County Sheriff’s Office, he was considered a role model and trailblazer for Sikh Americans and religious minorities that sought to serve in law enforcement.

Republican senator Ted Cruz said: ‘The

US Postal Office on Addicks Howell Road in Houston will now serve as a lasting tribute to Deputy Dhaliwal’s trailblazing legacy for Sikh Americans and religious minorities in law enforcement’.

Pyara Singh Dhaliwal, Dhaliwal’s father said: ‘Our family remains grateful for the outpouring of love and support in this effort to commemorate my son’.

‘This gesture will memorialize his legacy of service to his beloved Houston, while also reminding us all to uphold his example and celebrate the diversity that makes our and so many other communities strong’.

Sim J Singh, Sikh Coalition Senior Manager of Policy and Advocacy said: ‘We are very glad to see the Senate pass this important resolution and send it to the president’s desk’.

‘Signing this resolution into law and commemorating Deputy Dhaliwal in his city is an important way to affirm both his legacy and the fact that conscious efforts towards diversity and inclusion serve our communities well,’ he added.