The epicenter of terrorism, Pakistan, is again in headlines for obvious reasons. While atrocities against members of the Hindu and Sikh communities continue unabated in the neighbouring Islamic nation. Recently, Dina Kaur, a Sikh teacher, was abducted in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on Saturday and married against her will. The incident happened on 20 August, 2022. Prior to this, another incident of Sikh girl being forcibly converted to Islam also came to light.

Meanwhile, the Sikh community is currently demonstrating against the incident. On social media, a video of protesters chanting outside a Pakistani police station has gone viral.

As per the reports, Dina Kaur, a Sikh teacher, was taken hostage on Saturday. The victims’ family learned that their daughter had married a Muslim the following day, on August 21, 2022. After that the family went to a police station. Reportedly, police did not seriously consider the situation because there was no FIR.  The people from Sikh community started protesting.

The Sikhs demand that their protests will continue till their girl is returned to the community. While Dina Kaur’s father Gurbachan Singh told that his daughter was kidnapped yesterday from the side of the establishment. He pleaded with the police and to the administration but no one answered calmly. Gurbachan Singh said that he will continue to protest on the streets till he is given justice.

Manjinder Singh Sirsa, a BJP leader, denounced the entire incident and stated, “How is it possible for a family to see their daughters undergo emotional torture and forced religious conversion in silence? We stand in support of our Sikh brothers in Pakistan because this is a violation of fundamental human rights. I appeal to the Indian Minister of External Affairs, S. Jaishankar, to become involved in this situation. The prime minister of Pakistan is not concerned about these issues. We also get no response when we tweet that Sikhs need to be protected.”

The atrocities on Hindus and Sikhs living in Pakistan has been common in Pakistan. There the sentiments of the Sikh minorities are being hurt in a very systematic way. The cases of persecution of Sikhs by Islamic fundamentalists have shooted up in Pakistan since 2014. Due to this, uncertainty about the safety and future has also increased among the non-Muslim community in Pakistan. Also there has been a drastic downfall in the population of non-Muslims.

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