India slams TTP actions against Sikhs

[Naveed Yaseen]

By Iftikhar Gilani
NEW DELHI: India on Friday protested against the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan’s (TTP) attempt to impose Jizya (protection tax imposed on non-Muslims under sharia law) and other restrictions on Sikhs living in Orakzai Agency.

An Indian External Affairs Ministry spokesman said New Delhi had conveyed its concerns to Islamabad.

Earlier, the External Affairs Ministry summoned an official of the Pakistan’s High Commission in New Delhi to register a formal complaint over the development.

Sources said the Indian High Commission in Islamabad had also conveyed similar objections to the Foreign Office.

“On seeing reports about Sikh families in Pakistan being driven out of their homes and being subjected to Jizya and other such impositions, the Indian government has taken up the treatment of minorities with Pakistan,” spokesman Vishnu Prakash said. India’s main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) also took note of the TTP’s actions, with party spokesman Prakash Javedkar saying reports from Orakzai were deplorable.

He urged the Indian government to launch an international diplomatic offensive to force Islamabad to act against the offenders.

Meanwhile, Shrimani Gurdawara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC), the highest religious body of Sikhs, has written a letter to Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee regarding the development.

SGPC has sought permission from the prime minister to visit the Federally Administered Tribal Areas in Pakistan to assess the condition of Sikhs living in the area.

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp...2009_pg1_5