Sikhs will disappear from Pakistan in a few years! 75 years ago the population was 20 lakhs, now only this much remains
Recently two Sikhs were killed
Recently, on May 15, two Sikh businessmen were murdered on the outskirts of Khyber Pakhtoon province, according to Asian Light International. This was the twelfth incident since 2014 when extremists targeted someone from the Sikh community. Last year too, in September, a Sikh Unani doctor, Satnam Singh, was shot dead at his home in Peshawar.
Human rights commission condemned
The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan also strongly condemned the killings and said that this is not the first time that the Sikh community has been targeted here. Canada’s World Sikh Organization also condemned the Peshawar killings and expressed deep concern for the safety of Pakistan’s Sikh community. Most of the Sikhs in the Khyber Pakhtoon region come from economically weaker backgrounds. Their main occupation is to run a grocery store or work as a hakim.
Sikh population shrinking in Pakistan
According to the Pakistan Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee, there are about 15-20 thousand Sikhs left in Pakistan. Peshawar, where a large Sikh community used to live, now has only 500 Sikh families left. At the time of the partition of India in 1947, there were more than two million Sikhs living in Pakistan. Large cities like Lahore, Rawalpindi and Faisalabad were home to a large number of Sikh community population. But after 75 years of independence, the population of Sikh community is decreasing instead of increasing.
Sikhs were not included in the census
There is no clear data anywhere regarding the population of Sikhs in Pakistan. Significantly, since Sikhs were not included in the 2017 census, there is no actual data about them. Other sources, including the US Home Department, claim that the population of Sikhs living in Pakistan is 20 thousand. But people say that within the last two decades the size of this community has shrunk tremendously. Where in 2002 this count was about 50 thousand, now it has reduced to only 8 thousand.
Decline in the rights of the Sikh community
Despite court orders and government assurances, the statistics bureau has not released the number of Sikhs living in Pakistan. Since the number of Sikhs in Pakistan has come down, due to this the rights of this community have also been found to be declining.
Identity is also a big problem
Having a separate identity presents the biggest challenge to the Sikh community. Sikhs are quickly recognized in Pakistan because they grow beards and wear high turbans, thus making them stand out from Muslims.
discrimination against Sikhs
Apart from facing violence, the Sikh community has also faced persecution for wearing a turban and kada. The Sikh community is almost crippled due to constant discrimination. They are also afraid to wear dastar, kada, kirpan. Discrimination against Sikhs has become so great that Gurdwaras have been forcibly closed. The Sikhs of Pakistan have also probably realized that their situation is never going to get better.
