Two Sikhs murdered in “act of terrorism” in Pakistan

Two Sikh shopkeepers were murdered in a drive-by shooting by Islamic extremists in Peshawar (Pakistan) on Sunday (15th May), in another example of ongoing violence against Sikhs in the country.

The men, who ran spice shops in the Battathal bazaar shopping area of Sarband, a town in Peshawar, were shot whilst at work by as of yet two unknown assailants travelling on a motorcycle. Whilst one has been named as 38-year-old Ranjeet (also spelled as Ranjit) Singh, reports differ on the *name of the other man, which has been reported as any of Kuljit, Guljeet, Kanwaljeet or Saljeet Singh, although all reports confirm he was 42-years-old. Both are said to have been local Sikh neighbourhood Jogan Shah Mohalla.

*Note- pronunciation between different regions and English translations can result in South Asian news reports giving different names in such circumstances. It is not believed there is an issue of misidentification of the individual murdered.

News reports from the ground in Pakistan quote Head Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) Ijaz Khan as stating “We are investigating from different angles and it is confirmed that it’s an act of terrorism”. However, the intention to “to disturb interfaith harmony” in the country has been confirmed by Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari.

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan condemned the murders and added, “This is not the first time that the Sikh community in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (the province Peshawar is in)“. In October last year 45-year-old Satnam Singh, a medicinal practitioner, was also murdered in similar fashion whilst working at his pharmacy on the other side of Peshawar. Charanjeet Singh, a Sikh community activist, was murdered in 2018 and Sikh politician Soran Singh was also slain in 2016. Whilst some sources have suggested these killings were not related to Islamic terror against the Sikh community of the city, local Sikh community leader Gurpal Singh said in 2018 of these killings, “Unfortunately those working for interfaith harmony like Soran Singh and Charanjeet Singh don’t live for long.”, reflecting the ongoing issue of Islamic extremists attempting to crush any possible Sikh influence in Peshawar.

Some reports suggest IS-K, an Islamic extremist group, have claimed responsibility for the murders. Pakistan police reports claimed they killed three leads of the IS-K group in December last year, after the murder of Satnam Singh.

Although other areas of Pakistan are considered possibly safer for Sikhs, the community has faced various issues across the country for decades, an issue which has seemingly not been impacted by former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s public efforts of promoting Pakistani affection for its Sikh communities in recent years, efforts which were largely based around increasing Sikh-faith based tourism in the country. In 2020 of the most important Sikh sites in the world – Nankana Sahib Gurdwara, in the region where Sikh faith founder Guru Nanak Dev Ji Maharaj was born – was attacked by a mob angry at a pursuit for justice by local Sikhs in a case of forced marriage and conversion. Neighbouring Muslim nation Afghanistan has also seen relentless persecution of Sikhs, with the 2020 Kabul Gurdwara massacre of 25 (including a three-year-old) being the prime example of the issue.

In response to the murders on Sunday, various Sikh community groups held demonstrations across Pakistan demanding justice.

In response, new Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Shariff called the culprits “Pakistan’s enemies” and vowed to “eradicate them from the face of the earth” according to news reports. The new PM was installed after a turbulent political period in Pakistan which saw previous PM Imran Khan removed after a vote of no-confidence. Whether or not this political turbulence is a factor in the timing of the Sikh murders remains unclear.

Both men, who locals described as “friendly” and “harmless” leave behind widows and children.

More info will be shared on this story when possible.