What started as a civil dispute over a Bakersfield Sikh temple’s ownership bled into a criminal matter as one of its owners — a candidate in last year’s City Council election — pleaded not guilty Friday to accusations he hatched a plan to have fellow temple members shot as a way of teaching them a lesson.
Rajvir Singh Gill, 60, charged Wednesday with seven felony counts of soliciting specific criminal acts, appeared in Kern County Superior Court out of custody Friday with his attorney Jared M. Thompson. The former Ward 7 candidate was ordered by a judge to stay away from four people while also keeping 500 feet away from the temple, Shaheed Baba Deep Singh Ji Khalsa Darbar.
Bakersfield Police Department offense reports say Gill offered $10,000 to at least two people to shoot the kneecaps of people involved with Shaheed. The reports say an electrician who worked with Gill in the construction business said Gill offered him $2,000 to burn down Shaheed, at 6700 Stine Road.
Defense attorney Thompson said outside of court every charge levied against his client is an accusation and that the defense conduct its own investigation. He added his client’s character is very strong.
Problems arose after Shaheed’s owners were on the brink of losing the temple property to foreclosure. Shaheed’s leadership planned to create a limited liability corporation to buy back the property at auction.
But ownership of the temple wasn’t returned to all the original directors, sparking a financial dispute over control of Shaheed.
An intended victim who was allegedly Gill’s intended target told police Gill had a falling out with the temple owners several years ago, according to the police reports. The victim’s father and Gill were temple directors but their relationship soured after Gill tried to remove temple leaders and claimed sole ownership the property, police reported.
The allegations led to the filing of two competing lawsuits, both of which are still pending in Kern County Superior Court.
One intended victim theorized Gill intended to harm him because Gill was going to lose in court, according to police offense reports. There was a restraining order against Gill and one of this alleged targets, but Gill still caused “verbal and physical altercations” at Shaheed, police wrote.
Another intended victim interviewed by police said Gill came to a Sikh temple in 2021, expressed anger about “property issues” and threatened to kill him, according to the police reports.
Thompson, the attorney, noted Gill is very hurt by the accusations. They’re harmful to his reputation and that of his family, Thompson added.
“They’re very concerning and troubling,” he said.
A pre-preliminary hearing date was set for May 17.
Gill netted less than 7 percent of votes in the November election.
You can reach Ishani Desai at 661-395-7417. You can also follow her at @_ishanidesai on Twitter.
