Pakistan: Sikh Youth Shot Dead In Peshawar; MEA Slams Imran Khan Govt

The deceased lived in Malaysia and had come to Pakistan’s Peshawar for a month, to shop for his wedding, reports said.

New Delhi: A Sikh youth who hailed from Malaysia was shot dead in Pakistan’s Peshawar, media reports stated, sending shockwaves across the community already terrified after the attack at Nankana Sahib. Citing police, the Pakistani media reported that the body of the person, identified as Parwinder Singh, was found in the Chamkani police station area of Peshawar. The deceased lived in Malaysia and had come to Pakistan’s Peshawar for a month, to shop for his wedding. Harmeet Singh, the elder brother of the deceased, who is an anchor in a local channel sought justice for Singh. "Without minorities, no country can flourish and progress. Pakistan is beautiful because of minorities but each year, we end up carrying the dead on our shoulders,” he said in an emotional message. The family of the victim got to know about his death from a phone call by the unidentified assailant, suggesting that the incident could be a case of personal enmity. The dead body has been shifted to a hospital for postmortem India strongly condemns attack:  India on Sunday slammed Pakistan over the killing of the Sikh youth in Peshawar. "India strongly condemns the targeted killing of minority Sikh community member in Peshawar that follows the recent despicable vandalism and desecration of the holy Gurdwara Sri Janam Asthan at Nankana Sahib and the unresolved case of abduction, forced conversion and marriage of a Sikh girl Jagjit Kaur," the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a statement.

The MEA has asked the Imran Khan-led Pakistan government to take immediate actions to apprehend and give exemplary punishment to the perpetrators.

"India calls upon the Pakistan government to stop prevaricating and take immediate action to apprehend and give exemplary punishment to the perpetrators of these heinous acts," the statement said. It also lashed out at the Pakistani government for interfering in India's internal affairs. In fact, in a tweet on Sunday, Imran Khan veered towards criticism of the Narendra Modi-led government while condemning the Nankana Sahib incident. The MEA said: "The government of Pakistan should act in defence of their own minorities instead of preaching sermons about it to other countries." Also watch: Religious minorities especially Sikhs in Pakistan have already been complaining of insecurity and fear since the attack on the birthplace of Guru Nanak, the first Sikh Guru. A Muslim mob led by the family of a man who had abducted and forcibly converted a Sikh girl Jagjit Kaur, pelted stones at Nankana Sahib, trapping Sikh devotees inside the shrine. While India strongly condemned the attack, both the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party and the opposition led by the Congress protested outside the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi.