J-K BJP leader urges PM Modi to rescue Sikhs from Afghanistan

Jammu, Aug 12 (PTI) A Jammu and Kashmir BJP leader urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday to make necessary arrangements for rescuing Sikh families from Afghanistan amid an escalating situation in that country, and ensuring their proper settlement in India.

J&K BJP vice president Varinderjeet Singh also said around 650 families belonging to the Sikh community are under "threat of persecution" due to the violence in Afghanistan.

The Taliban has been making rapid advances across Afghanistan by resorting to widespread violence since the United States began withdrawing its troops from the country on May 1.

The US has already pulled back the majority of its forces and is looking to complete the drawdown by August 31.

Singh said the minorities in Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan have been targeted repeatedly during the past so many years and the respective governments in these three countries have never shown any concern towards taking effective steps for checking repetition of such incidents.

He said the BJP-led government under Prime Minister Modi brought in the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) in 2019 with the sole objective of granting citizenship rights in India to the minorities of some countries. This, he said, also includes the Sikhs living in Afghanistan.

"The time has come when the Union government should be practical and make necessary arrangements for rescuing Sikh families from Afghanistan, settle them gracefully in India and grant constitutional and legal rights as enjoyed by other citizens of this country," Singh said.

He also demanded that the Union government should use its diplomatic channels to ensure safety of the religious places of Sikhs and Hindus in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh. PTI AB CK