Amidst haunting fears of persecution of Sikhs in Pakistan, DSGMC meets Aizaz Khan

New Delhi, Aug 29: A delegation of the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee ( DSGMC ) on Monday (Aug 29) met the High Commissioner of Pakistan (Political Attache) Aizaz Khan in connection with the recent incident of kidnapping of a Sikh girl Bibi Deena Kaur in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. The meeting took place at the High Commission of Pakistan, in Chanakyapuri, New Delhi.

 

 

 

 

The Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee in a Memorandum "demanded the formation of a special grievance cell for minorities in Pakistan to provide them prompt justice as their voices go unheard and they have to run from pillar to post to seek justice." This comes as a Sikh woman Dina Kaur was forcibly abducted and converted to Islam on the evening of Aug 20 in the Buner district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan.

 

 

"With a very heavy heart, Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee is writing this memorandum to draw the kind attention of the Govt of Pakistan toward the repeated incidents of atrocities on minorities, kidnapping of Hindu and Sikh girls and their forceful conversion to Islam and Nikah in Pakistan," the memorandum read. Kaur was kidnapped, forcibly converted to Islam and was made to do Nikah against her will. The incident occurred in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. The Police did not register FIR on the complaint of the victim's family which led to a massive demonstration outside the police station. The incident shocked the Sikh community worldwide.

 

 

 

 

 

The memorandum highlighted, "when such incidents happen, it is generally noticed that local administration and police play a negative role and discriminate against Sikhs and try to hush up the matter." Slamming the Pakistani govt, it read, "On the one hand, the Govt of Pakistan boasts that Pakistan is a democratic country and treats all its citizens equally but on the other hand, atrocities are committed against minorities and gross violation of human rights is a matter of grave concern."

 

Many Sikh families are settled in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan and they are mostly engaged in businesses. The minority community, including the Sikhs, Hindus and Christians from different parts of Pakistan have been facing persecution and their girls are regularly kidnapped, raped and married to their abductors. Many families from Pakistan have already migrated to India and other countries to protect their daughters and other family members.