According to reports appearing in Pakistani media a government official was forcing members of the Sikh community to convert to Islam
India will discuss with Pakistan the issue of alleged forced conversion of Sikhs to Islam. External Affairs minister Sushma Swaraj on Tuesday expressed concern over media reports of Sikhs being forced to convert to Islam in Pakistan's Hangu district in the frontier Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. "We will take this up at the highest level with Government of Pakistan. Sikh community in Hangu being forced to convert," she said on Twitter, tagging the official handle of the Indian High Commission in Pakistan in the tweet.
Earlier, Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh had requested her to take up the matter with Pakistani authorities. Singh wrote, "Request @SushmaSwaraj ji to take up this 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 @MEAIndia should pursue the matter at the highest levels." Later he also wrote a letter to Swaraj.
Captain Amarinder Singh said the Indian government was duty-bound to ensure that Sikhs in any part of the world are not victimised or coerced in any manner. "We are duty-bound to protect the identity of Sikhs, wherever they (Sikhs) may be living," he wrote in the letter. Pointing out that the community, which had been living in the area for more than a century, was reported to have filed an official complaint to the district deputy commissioner, said the chief minister.
According to reports appearing in Pakistani media a government official was forcing members of the Sikh community to convert to Islam. The community members have lodged a complaint with the deputy commissioner accusing assistant commissioner tehsil Tall Yaqoob Khan of harassing them. "We the residents of Doaba area are being tortured religiously... The Constitution empowers us to defend our religious beliefs against anyone and we want you to call AC Tall Yaqoob Khan and inquire the issue," the complaint read. The district administration, however, said there was no issue of converting someone forcefully to Islam and the authorities had ensured religious freedom. However, taking cognizance of their complaint, the Sikh community members had been invited to a meeting to address their grievances.
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