Sikh youth shot in Peshawar, days after mob attack in Nankana SahibXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXHis brother, a TV anchor, says won't rest till killers nabbed
JAISHANKAR QUOTE IN TWITTERGS Paul
Tribune News Service
Amritsar, January 5
Two days after the mob attack at Gurdwara Janam Asthan in Nankana Sahib, Sikh youth Parvendar Singh, 25, was murdered by ‘unknown’ persons in Peshawar on Sunday evening. He was the brother of Pakistan’s first Sikh news anchor Harmeet Singh.
Talking to The Tribune over the phone, Harmeet Singh called it “targeted killing” to suppress the minority community. “His marriage was fixed for next month. He was in Peshawar for shopping when unidentified assailants opened fire on him. The police says they are clueless. Unless there’s pressure, the case will be buried. But I will not rest till the killers are put behind bars,” he said.
Hailing from Chakesa in Shangla district of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Harmeet Singh, a Sehajdhari Sikh, was pursuing business studies in Malaysia when he was offered a job by Public News. He hit the headlines in June 2018 when he was appointed news anchor by the Islamabad-based Urdu channel and associated with Radio Pakistan as a broadcaster.
“As a Sikh face on TV, I received a tremendous response from all quarters. I chose the job to wipe out the impression that the minorities were unsafe in Islamic countries. I believe I was wrong. The Government of Pakistan receives massive funding for ensuring the safety of minority communities — be it Sikhs, Hindus or Christians. Yet the minorities continue to be targeted.”
One of his colleagues, Rawal Khan, said Harmeet Singh had received a call from an unknown number, saying: “We have killed your brother.”
Gobind Singh Longowal, SGPC president, called upon the Pakistan authorities to take immediate action against the killers. “We condemn the targeted killing of religious minorities, especially the Sikhs, in Pakistan. Earlier, it was vandalism at Nankana Sahib and now the murder of a Sikh youth. We want exemplary punishment for the culprits”, he said.
