Image: City Council YouTube (Riddhi Patel)

During a city council meeting in Bakersfield, California, the US on Apr 10, an Indian-American was arrested with 18 felony accusations for threatening to go to the houses of Bakersfield city council members and ‘murder’ them.

According to local media, she expressed her agitation by citing council members’ lack of support for a cease-fire resolution against Israel and increased security measures at the government building in response to ongoing anti-Israel protests.

She said that anti-Israel protestors were being unjustly treated with metal detectors, adding, “We’ll visit your residence; we’ll murder you,” allegedly aiming her warnings at Bakersfield Mayor Karen Goh and council members.

Patel also accused the council members of not ‘caring’ about oppression occurring in Bakersfield and labelled them as ‘horrible people’.

“You guys (city council members) parade Gandhi around, and there is a Hindu holiday called Chaitra Navaratri that starts this week. I remind you that these holidays that we practice, that other people in the global south practice, believe in violent revolution against their oppressors,” she added.

Who is Riddhi Patel?

A 28-year-old pro-Palestine Indian-American citizen, born and raised in Bakersfield, has been facing over a dozen felony accusations.

Patel has been an economic development coordinator at the Centre on Race, Poverty, & the Environment (CRPE) since 2020.

According to her bio in CRPE, she “prioritises highlighting the intersectionality that comes with the environmental justice movement to achieve collective liberation for all oppressed communities.”

Also read:

Who is Bhadresh Patel in FBI’s top 10 most wanted fugitive list?