Government Officials In Pakistan’s Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Force Sikhs To Convert To Islam

The Sikh community from Hangu district of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) in Pakistan raised concerns after being forced to convert to Islam by a government official.

Community leaders lodged a complaint with the deputy commissioner claiming that an Assistant Commissioner Tehsil Tall Yaqoob Khan was allegedly forcing Sikhs to convert to Islam, reported The Express Tribune.

Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh tweeted to External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, urging her to take up the issue with Pakistan.

"We cannot allow the Sikh community to be victimised in such a manner. It's our duty to help protect the Sikh identity and the Ministry of External Affairs should pursue the matter at the highest level," he said.

Taking note of the report, Swaraj said she would take up the issue with Pakistan.

District Nazim Hangu for minority Farid Chand Singh, who filed the complaint, said that it would not have affected them had it been someone ‘ordinary’.

“When you hear such things from a government official, it becomes something really serious,” Singh told The Express Tribune.

Meanwhile, Deputy Commissioner Hangu Shahid Mehmood said the Sikh community members got offended during a conversation with the assistant commissioner, which the latter never really meant.

He further added that there is no such issue of converting someone forcefully to Islam, rather administration ensured religious freedom. (PTI)