The United States Afghan Sikh community has confirmed that an Afghan Sikh was abducted from the Paktia province in eastern part of the Afghanistan country. The man who has been identifies as Nidhan Singh was abducted 4 days ago and the United Sates community is reaching out to the Indian government for help.
Recently an Afghan Sikh was abducted in eastern Afghanistan. After the abduction of Nidhan Singh, the Afghan Sikh community in the United States of America reached out to the Indian government for the resettlement of Sikhs living in Afghanistan. India has been getting a lot of appraisal for their Vande Bharat Mission where they have helped Indian from around the world reach the country safe and sound in this coronavirus outbreak. The Sikh community has made an appeal to India to provide a safe place for more than 600 Sikhs in Afghanistan.
The Chairman of the Afghan Sikh community in New Jersey, Paramjit Singh Bedi has also confirmed that he has spoken to the Sikh Member of Parliament and that officials in Afghanistan have also promised to help and find Nidhan Singh.
Nidhan Singh was from Tsamkani district in the Paktia province and was employed as a helped at the local Gurudwara. The community has made special request to Indian government to help them under the Vande Bharat Mission.
After the abduction of Nidhan Singh, Sikh community is worried and tensed about the minorities like Hindus and Sikhs living in Afghanistan. In the month of May, 26 US congressmen wrote a letter to the secretary of state Mike Pompeo stating the safety and security of religious minorities residing in Afghanistan. In the letter to Mike Pompeo, the Congressmen have urged the secretary to take action and measures to facilitate the members of the Sikh and Hindu communities trapped in the war torn country of Afghanistan to locate them to a safe and expeditious location.
The 26 congressmen also included Congressman John Garamendi who is the co-chairperson of the Sikh Caucus. They also stated that the Sikh community is under grave danger from the Islamic state terrorist attacks which are directed towards the Sikhs belonging to the country. The Sikh and Hindu community was a thriving population in Afghanistan and had a community of nearly 3 lakh people. The minorities have been facing a lot of discrimination and violence from the extremists. The years of discrimination in the country endured by the minorities has now left the community to shorten and which now comprises of fewer than 100 families across the entire country.
The lives of Sikh minorities in places like Kabul, Ghazni and Jalalabad has been worrisome since a long time. The community has been seeking support from India for the same constantly over a few years. The leaders of the Afghan Sikh community have made several appeals to Indian to accommodate the Sikhs and Hindus from Afghanistan. They request the government of India to grant them legal entry with a long term residency and multiple entry visas.
The Afghan Sikh community leaders of United States of America said it’s necessary to recognize the situations of religious minorities and find solutions. The community says that India is the only option for their safe residual to these minorities.
By Deepika Agarwal
