SGPC arranges flight, 55 Afghan Sikhs, Hindus welcomed in India, 43 still stuck/ Rashmi Talwar/ Kashmir Images

(TEXT BELOW)

INDO-AFGHAN

SGPC arranges flight, 55 Afghan Sikhs, Hindus welcomed in  India, 43 still stuck

Rashmi Talwar

AMIRTSAR 27 Sep 2022—

Fifty-Five Sikhs and Hindus of Afghanistan, including 38 adults, 14 children, and three infants, were evacuated via a special aircraft organized by Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), Amritsar, safely to India. The flight was operated by Ariana Afghan- the Afghan carrier.  

The Sikh and Hindu afghans stranded in Afghanistan were welcomed heartily by members of SGPC and AAP MP Vikramjit Singh Sahney Rajya Sabha at Delhi Airport. Sahney thanked both the Ministry of External Affairs GoI and the SGPC for their facilitation.

Welcoming families, MP Sahney also president of the ‘World Punjabi Organisation’, said –“Ministry of External Affairs had granted them e-visas and repatriation was facilitated by both the governments. However, four ‘saroops’ of Sri Guru Granth Sahib- the holy books of Sikhs, still remain in Afghanistan. Due to lack of cooperation from the local administration in Kabul, the books could not be transferred to India as per religious protocol,” he added.

The evacuated Afghan Sikh refugees thanked the government of India and PM Narendra Modi for providing fast e-visas and safely evacuating them.

“We would like to thank the Indian government for providing us with urgent visas and helping us to reach India. We are 55 families who were able to reach India, but many of us still have families left behind as around 40 and more people are still stranded in Afghanistan. They have been issued visas from the Indian government, but it is their wish now if they want to return or not,” Sukhbeer Singh Khalsa, Afghan Sikh refugee said.

Talking about the prevailing circumstances after the takeover by the Taliban “The condition of minorities is not very well in Afghanistan. I was imprisoned for four months. Taliban cut our hair in prison. I am thankful and happy to return to India,” said an Afghan Sikh, Baljeet Singh. 

Puneet Singh Chandhok, president, Indian World Forum (IWF), said, “SGPC in coordination with IWF, Government of India (GoI) facilitated the evacuation of distressed minorities from the Taliban governed the Islamic nation. Earlier, as many as 68 Afghan Hindus and Sikhs arrived in Delhi following the attack at Gurudwara Karte Parwan in Kabul. The airfare for the same is being borne by SGPC. Significantly, more than 300 fled from Afghanistan and arrived in India since the Taliban took over Kabul.”

Around 43 Hindus and Sikhs remain in Afghanistan and about ten e-visa applications were pending with the government of India.

The AAP MP also promised to rehabilitate the evacuees under their program “MyFamilyMyResponsibilty”, in a tweet.

Raj Gill President of the woman’s wing Punjab AAP, in an emotive message, wrote “None of us can honestly grasp the level of tragedy they have gone through. People escaping violence must be able to cross borders safely. They must not face discrimination or be unfairly denied refugee status or asylum due to their race, or religion. Thank you for accepting them.”

00–00

‘

Hindu Sikh flee Afghanistan

Taliban ban Sikh Holy Books out of Afghanistan / Rashmi Talwar / Kashmir Images

(TEXT BELOW)

Indo-Afghan

60 Hindus, Sikhs stranded in Afghanistan, after Taliban ban to take Sikh Holy Books out of the country

Rashmi Talwar

AMRITSAR 16^th September 2022– Taliban led Afghan Government restricted the departure and ferrying of Sri Guru Granth Sahib- The holy book of Sikhs- out of Afghanistan by a group of 60 Afghan Sikhs and Hindus scheduled to arrive at Delhi ON September 11, 2022.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Afghanistan refused to facilitate the departure of four holy books, as per its religious sanctity and protocol. Officials of Afghanistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs put forward objections to afghan’s Ministry of Information & Culture imposing a ban on the departure of books out of Afghanistan until clearance. The books were being carried to pay obeisance at Golden Temple Amritsar.  The Taliban-led Afghan government however cited the religious scriptures as a heritage of the country.

Puneet Singh Chandhok, President, Indian World Forum, while talking to Kashmir Images from Delhi stated-“Immediate intervention of Government of India was sought in this regard, through Ministry of External Affairs and the Indian mission in Kabul; and talks are underway with Afghan counterparts, officials confirmed. The clearance is however being awaited”.

Afghan Sikhs are from various ethno-linguistic backgrounds including Pashtun, Hindkowan, and Punjabi.  Once numbering between 2-5 Lakhs (1.8% to 4.6% of the national population) in the 1970s, their population in Afghanistan dwindled since the Afghan wars began.

It may be mentioned that afghan Sikhs started fleeing from their homeland in 1990 and fewer than 100 are left, including this last large group of 60 Sikhs and Hindus who are unwilling to leave the country without the holy books of the Sikhs and hence stranded. Amritsar-based,  Shiromani Gurdwara Prabhandak Committee (SGPC) president Harjinder S Dhami, took strong objection to the ban by the Taliban, alluding to it as direct interference in a community’s religious affairs.  

00–00