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  1. https://www.indiatoday.in/world/story/multiple-blasts-gurdwara-karte-parwan-in-kabul-afghanistan-1963815-2022-06-18 2 dead in blasts at Kabul Gurdwara, IS links suspected; MEA monitoring situation A guard and Sikh man have been killed in an attack by terrorists at Gurdwara Karte Parwan in Afghanistan's Kabul. Multiple blasts were reported. IS links are suspected behind the attack, the MEA is monitoring the situation. New Delhi June 18, 2022 UPDATED: June 18, 2022 12:38 IST Gurdwara Karte Parwan in Kabul, Afghanistan, has been attacked by terrorists. Multiple blasts were reported at Gurdwara Sahib premises. ISIS Khorasan is suspected of being behind the attack. The Ministry of External Affairs is monitoring the situation. According to sources, the entire premises of Gurdwara was set on fire. The attack started at 7:15am Kabul time (8.30 am India time). A 60-year-old man, identified as Sawinder Singh and the guard of the Gurudwara were killed while three Taliban soldiers were wounded in the incident. Two attackers were cornered by Taliban soldiers. At least 7-8 people are still believed to be trapped inside, but the numbers are not confirmed. "I heard gunshots and blasts coming from the gurdwara," Gurnam Singh, a Sikh community leader told AFP. According to reports, 25-30 Afghan Hindus and Sikhs were present in the Gurudwara for morning prayers and as the attackers entered the premises, 10-15 managed to flee. The rest are trapped inside or feared to be dead. BJP MLA Manjinder Singh Sirsa said, "Had a talk with Gurnam Singh, President of Gurdwara Karte Parwan. He pleaded for global support for Sikhs in Afghanistan." Meanwhile, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), in a statement on the incident, said, "We are deeply concerned about the reports emanating from Kabul about an attack on a sacred Gurudwara in that city. We are closely monitoring the situation and waiting for further details on the unfolding developments." External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar also condemned the attack and said the government is closely monitoring the situation. Former Punjab CM Capt Amarinder Singh also urged the MEA to look into the incident. He said, "Deeply concerned to hear about the news of an attack at a Gurdwara Sahib in Kabul, Afghanistan. Praying to Waheguru Ji for the safety of all the devotees & citizens stuck inside the premises. Urge the MEA to look into this matter & ensure the safety of all devotees." Puneet Singh Chandhok, Indian World Forum chief, said that an unknown armed assailant entered Gurdwara today. "I just spoke to Gurnam Singh, Gurdwara Karte Parwan president. He was weeping." As per Puneet, the militants belong to ISIS. Puneet has requested the Indian government to immediately repatriate the Afghan minorities from there without any further delay. "They have been waiting for e-visas for the last six months," he said
  2. Isnt it sad to see their roots being cut off? What do you guys think? Sikhi is ending in afghanistan. Also I hope they are able to keep their sikhi intact while living in a completely different religous and cultural country like mexico.
  3. Afghanistan’s last Sikhs in a dilemma: To stay or leave Community leaders estimate just 140 Sikhs remain in the Taliban-ruled country, mostly in the eastern city of Jalalabad and capital Kabul. An Afghan Sikh priest praying at the Karte Parwan Gurdwara temple in Kabul [Mohd Rasfan/AFP] Published On 20 Jan 202220 Jan 2022 The caretaker of Kabul’s last Sikh temple stands looking at the cavernous hall where throngs once gathered in worship. Only a handful are left now. “Afghanistan is our country, our homeland,” said Gurnam Singh. “But we are leaving out of sheer hopelessness.” In the 1970s, Afghanistan’s Sikh population numbered 100,000, but decades of conflict, poverty and intolerance have driven almost all of them into exile. The Soviet occupation, subsequent Taliban regime and bloody military intervention by the United States winnowed their numbers to just 240 last year, according to figures kept by the community. After the Taliban returned to power in August, opening the newest chapter in Afghanistan’s dark history, a fresh wave of Sikhs fled the country. Today, Gurnam Singh estimates just 140 remain, mostly in the eastern city of Jalalabad and in Kabul. An Afghan Sikh priest carrying the Guru Granth Sahib at the Karte Parwan Gurdwara in Kabul [Mohd Rasfan/AFP] Some of the remaining devotees trickle into the Karte Parwan Gurdwara temple to pray on a recent wintry morning. Men stand to one side, women to the other – about 15 people in total. Sitting barefoot on a floor covered with thick red rugs, they warm themselves around stoves and listen to a recitation from the Guru Granth Sahib, the Sikh holy book. In November, the temple had three copies, but two have since been sent to New Delhi for “safekeeping”. Poverty is rife among Afghan Sikhs, and attacks by the Afghan chapter of the ISIL (ISIS) armed group are a real threat. The overwhelming majority of Sikhs fleeing Afghanistan have landed in India, where 90 percent of the religion’s 25 million global adherents live, mainly in the northwest region of Punjab. Since the Taliban takeover, India has offered exiled Sikhs priority visas and the opportunity to apply for long-term residency. There is no sign yet that citizenship is on the table. Pharmacist Manjit Singh, 40, is among those who turned down the offer, despite his daughter having emigrated there with her new husband last year. “What would I do in India?” he asked. “There is no job or house there.” Among the remaining holdouts, the prospect of leaving is particularly wrenching: it would mean abandoning their spiritual home. “When this gurdwara was built 60 years ago, the whole area was full of Sikhs,” said 60-year-old community elder Manmohan Singh. “Whatever joy or sorrow we felt, we shared it here.” A priest praying at the Karte Parwan Gurdwara temple in Kabul [Mohd Rasfan/AFP] From the outside, the temple is largely indistinguishable from other buildings on the street. But security here is markedly high, with body searches, ID checks and two fortified doors. In early October, unidentified gunmen forced their way inside and vandalised the sacred space. The incident had ugly echoes of the most scarring attack on the Afghan Sikh community. In March 2020, members of ISIL assaulted the Gurdwara Har Rai Sahib in Shor Bazar, a former enclave of Kabul’s Sikh community, killing 25. Since the attack, that temple – and the nearby Dharamshala Gurdwara, the capital’s oldest Sikh house of worship at an estimated 500 years – have been abandoned. Parmajeet Kaur was struck by shrapnel in her left eye during the attack, and her sister was among those killed. In the weeks that followed, Kaur packed her bags and headed for New Delhi, but “we had no work and it was expensive, so we came back”, she said. That was in July, a few weeks before the Taliban returned to power. Now Kaur, her husband and three children are fed and housed by Karte Parwan Gurdwara. Her children do not go to school, and Kaur never ventures beyond the walls of the temple, the only place where she feels safe. She thinks about leaving again, this time for Canada or the US. “My son and daughters are still small,” she said. “If we leave, we can make something of our lives.”
  4. Sikh separatist leader condemns Kabul gurdwara attack, requests India to shelter minorities from Afghanistan ANI | Updated: Mar 28, 2020 15:15 ISTFounder of Dal Khalsa and UK-based Sikh separatist leader Jaswant Singh Thekedar (File photo) London [UK], Mar 28 (ANI): Jaswant Singh Thekedar, the founder of Dal Khalsa - a Sikh separatist organisation, has condemned the barbaric attack on a historic gurdwara in Kabul and requested the Indian government to shelter the remaining families of Sikhs and Hindus from Afghanistan. On Wednesday, armed terrorists killed 25 civilians in a terror attack on the 400-year-old Gurdwara in Shor Bazar in Kabul. The Islamic State affiliate in Afghanistan claimed responsibility for the attack, but many experts believe that Pakistan's spy agency, the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), propagated it to oppose Ashraf Ghani, who was re-elected as the President of Afghanistan last month. In a video message, Singh said, "In Afghanistan, the way the Taliban carried out a barbaric attack on the Sikhs in Kabul's historic gurdwara and killed children and women who were praying for the people affected by coronavirus pandemic is highly condemnable." "The attackers are not religious people and they have no humanity. They have only one motive to call others as 'kafirs' or infidel and kill them. It is also preached in their holy book. This is an unforgettable incident for the Sikhs," he added. The separatist leader also stated that he has requested the Indian government to allow the remaining Sikhs and Hindus from Afghanistan to get them settled in India. "Our request has been accepted and after the COVID-19 crisis. Whoever will apply for a visa, the Indian government will facilitate them," he said. "We are thankful to the Indian authorities. We are also reaching out to the victims' families with all possible help. We are your brothers. The horrific attack has happened on the entire Sikh community. We all stand together with your pain," Singh added. The Sikh community in the war-torn country that once constituted a vibrant, well integrated and economically active part of the Afghan society has been persecuted and driven away, since the Taliban grabbed the reins in the 1990s. Their depletion has been so rapid that of the once close to a quarter of a million population, only a minuscule 1000-odd still remain in the country, barely eking out a livelihood amid extremely violent circumstances. (ANI)
  5. Quite a few interesting documentaries on youtube regarding these beasts. How they brainwash kids and gullible low IQ cannon fodder sunni muslim into fighting a jihad for them using videos of incitement against the non-muslims and Quran as tools. non
  6. Had die hard suicide Sikh fighters entered a masjid and started shooting up the place killing men, women and children. Destroying their qurans and generally causing mayhem there would be no end of Sikhs and sikh organisations condeming such people and attacks. So my question is has anyone found even 1 islamic religious or political organisation that has condemned the incident and issued a fatwa against such muslims and incidents to not to take place again? I have read somewhere the pakistani government and turkish government condemned the attack however to my knowledge no Islamic body in where in the world has said anything or offered their support to afghan sikhs in their time of dire need.
  7. I've said this before earlier in the month, every time Sikhs help muslims (royinga, kashmir, new delhi) this is the reward from sunni salafi muslims on Sikhs.....genocide. Waheguru is sending a big message and our stupid low IQ so called "Sikhs" dont listen and continue to help the 1.5 billion strong muslim community while letting their most bullied, extremely scared and vulnerable Sikhs in the world get murdered by them in afghanistan. Shame on the Sikh kaum. https://www.yahoo.com/news/afghan-gunmen-storm-sikh-temple-054331204.html Afghanistan conflict: Militants in deadly attack on Sikh temple in Kabul BBC•March 25, 2020 Afghan Sikhs grieved for their relatives near the site of the attack At least 25 people have been killed in a militant attack on a Sikh temple in the Afghan capital Kabul. The interior ministry said a gunman had burst into the complex early in the morning, firing on worshippers. He was killed in an exchange of fire lasting six hours with security forces. Earlier reports said a group of assailants had carried out the attack. About 150 people were trapped in the complex in the Shorbazar area. The Islamic State group claimed the attack. IS has targeted Sikhs and other religious minorities before in Afghanistan. The country's main militant group, the Taliban, denied any involvement. Nato in Afghanistan called it an outrage. IS is less powerful than the Taliban in Afghanistan and has lost much of the territory it once controlled - but it has not been part of recent negotiations with the US and retains the ability to carry out deadly attacks, reports the BBC's Secunder Kermani. What do we know about the attack? About 150 people were inside the temple, which houses families and regularly hosts morning prayers, said Anarkali Kaur Honaryar, a Sikh MP in the Afghan parliament. People switched off their phones and tried to hide when the attack began, she said. Security forces surrounded the scene of the attack Another Sikh MP, Narender Singh Khalsa, put the number of people inside at 200. "Three suicide bombers entered a dharamsala [sanctuary area]," he told Reuters. "The gunmen started their attack at a time when the dharamsala was full of worshippers." Photos from the scene show security forces carrying people away on stretchers. Photos show security forces transferring victims of the attack at Dharamshala, a Sikh worship area in PD1 of #Kabul. #Afghanistan pic.twitter.com/NDyCvmWnH9 — TOLOnews (@TOLOnews) March 25, 2020 US-Taliban deal raises hope for peace Trump hails deal with Taliban to end Afghan war Afghanistan: The long road to peace How vulnerable are Sikhs in Afghanistan? Afghanistan's dwindling Sikh population, now said to number fewer than 10,000, has long complained of discrimination and harassment by the Muslim majority. In July 2018, IS said it had bombed a gathering of Sikhs and Hindus in the eastern city of Jalalabad, killing 19 people and injuring 20. Awtar Singh Khalsa, one of the country's best-known Sikh politicians at the time, was among those killed. Map
  8. The Last 2 Sikhs in the Taliban’s Heartland A religious minority that has weathered many episodes of Afghanistan’s turbulent history may soon disappear. By Franz J. Marty September 26, 2018 LASHKAR GAH, HELMAND, AFGHANISTAN – Like many other Afghans, Satnam Singh rides on a bicycle to work in his hometown of Lashkar Gah, the capital of the southern Afghan province of Helmand; that’s what he was doing on one day in early summer 2018. “But that day, a man on a motorcycle deliberately hit me and I fell,” Satnam recounts. The reason that he got knocked over was apparently because the style of his turban clearly shows that he belongs to Afghanistan’s Sikh minority, members of a religion that has its center in India and Pakistan. The incident might be small, but the seemingly never-ending nature of such harassment is – together with more serious threats and the dire economic situation – one of the main reasons that almost all Sikhs have left Lashkar Gah. In fact, as of summer 2018, only two Sikhs remain in Helmand, which is considered the Taliban’s heartland. The province is where U.S. and British forces suffered the highest casualties during the long Afghan war’s latest ongoing chapter, which started with the U.S.-led intervention after 9/11. Enjoying this article? Click here to subscribe for full access. Just $5 a month. The Sikhs have always been a small but native minority in Afghanistan; according to one account, prior to 1992, there were about 220,000 Hindus and Sikhs in Afghanistan with another putting that number as low as 50,000. By now, the very few remaining are concentrated in the provinces of Nangarhar, Kabul, and Ghazni. Until a few years ago, there was also still a tiny community of Sikhs in Lashkar Gah. During the Taliban regime in the 1990s, about 60 Sikh families were living in Lashkar Gah, Satnam remembers. They held out there despite the extremist Islamist rule of the Taliban, who forced non-Muslim Sikhs to identify themselves by wearing yellow patches. Satnam asserts though that, while the time under the Taliban was tough for Sikhs, things were worse in the preceding civil war – and the situation is also worse now. This was corroborated by other reports citing Afghan Sikhs. Hence, the exodus of Lashkar Gah’s Sikhs only began after the overthrow of the Taliban regime by the U.S.-led intervention, which was supposed to bring greater freedom for all Afghans, including minorities. “Since 2001 many left. And about three years ago, almost all of the remaining around 30 families of Sikhs decided to leave together,” Satnam said during an interview in July 2018. Virtually all of them, like the Afghan Sikhs that had emigrated before, went to India. “About two years ago, I sent my wife and daughter to my father-in-law in Kandahar [the capital of the neighboring province with the same name] and about a month ago from there to my father in India,” Satnam added. By now, he and his friend and neighbor Charan Singh are the only two Sikhs left in Lashkar Gah. When asked why all the other Sikhs, including his family, had left, Satnam’s first reply is, “It is the harassment by the people.” “They throw stones at our houses, smash windows, and spray nasty graffitis on our walls,” he continues. Those allegations are proven by the dents and washed out scribblings on the wall of the house in a sleepy dusty street, where Satnam and Charan live and where they renovate the last remaining Gurdwara (Sikh place of worship) in Lashkar Gah. Such continued harassment is also confirmed by a 2017 report from the U.S. State Department, showing that the (albeit limited) freedom of religion that the Afghan constitution guarantees exists on paper, but hardly in reality. “And this harassment is not done by Taliban, but by ordinary local people,” Satnam adds, voicing desperation about the fact that he and his fellow Sikhs are treated like unwanted strangers in their own birthplace. Slowly, over time, this has become intolerable. “We have complained to the police about this, but they cannot prevent it,” Satnam alleges. This was contested by Mohammad Zamon, the spokesman of the police in Helmand: “There are no problems between the Sikhs and other residents of Lashkar Gah. And if there should be any, the Sikhs can call the police and the police will – as in the case of any other resident – help them.” In view of the aforementioned damage, however, this sounds like whitewashing the problems of Lashkar Gah’s last Sikhs by a police force that arguably needs almost all hands on deck to keep the insurgency at bay. In any event, Satnman also indicates many other issues that Sikhs face. For example, they would not be able to cremate the bodies of deceased Sikhs, the usual funeral method in their religion, as their Muslim neighbors see this as a sin. There are also threats. One letter that Satnam received demands all remaining Sikhs to pay a tax for non-Muslims and threatens that “bad things” will happen otherwise, with the original Pashto language implying that this is a death threat. The letter was sent in the name of insurgents, but its authenticity is unclear. The fact that on July 1 a suicide bomber specifically targeted Sikhs in an attack in Jalalabad, the capital of the eastern Afghan province of Nangarhar, that killed at least 19 people (most of them Sikhs) and wounded 20 more, shows that threats have to be taken very seriously. It should be noted, though, that said attack was claimed by the self-declared Islamic State, a group that is known for much more ruthlessly targeting civilians and religious minorities than the Taliban. Hence, as the self-declared Islamic State has no known presence in Helmand, such an attack against Sikhs appears significantly less likely here than in Nangarhar. Be that as it may, in the wake of the July 1 attack, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani assured Afghan Hindus and Sikhs that the government is not indifferent and will protect them. However, before this presidential assertion, Satnam stated that he does not have much confidence that the government can effectively protect them. Another Afghan and member of the (Muslim) Hazara minority that is also targeted by extremists summed up how bad the overall situation for the Sikh in Afghanistan is: “To be a member of a minority in Afghanistan is hell; but to be a Sikh means being in the innermost circle of hell,” he said. Satnam Singh, one of the two last Sikhs in Lashkar Gah, in his herbal medicine shop in his hometown. Photo by Franz J. Marty. Another reason for the Sikh exodus is the dire economic situation, which was also noted by the 2017 U.S. State Department report. “I left Lashkar Gah for India about two and a half years ago,” Atar Singh, another Sikh who was visiting Lashkar Gah in July 2018, told The Diplomat. “The reasons were the war, the harassment, and the fact that there was no work,” Atar, who used to be a cloth seller in his native Lashkar Gah, added. The importance of this economic component becomes clear from the explanation for Atar’s visit. “I came back to Lashkar Gah to see whether I can return and set up shop again here,” he said. “The life in our exile in India is very difficult. We barely find any work to support our families and, although we are refugees, we don’t receive any help from anyone. This is why I wanted to come back. But unfortunately the rents for shops in Lashkar Gah are high and the market in general is down. So I can’t move back here.” This was corroborated by Satnam, who sells herbal medicine in his small store in Lashkar Gah: “Work has become very bad. However, the work here is still better than in India, where I wouldn’t know what to do. So I stay.” Asked whether he would leave Lashkar Gah, if there was an alternative – another place where he could live and work – Satnam answered evasively. First, he said that there is no good alternative. When pressed again, he replied: “I will stay in Lashkar Gah until there is absolutely no possibility any more to do so.” Although he never stated this explicitly, one main reason Satnam is still holding out in Lashkar Gah is apparently that he simply does not want to leave his home, the place where he was born and grew up. Echoing this, Atar, who – not without pride – mentioned that he had served seven years in Afghanistan’s army in the 1980s, at one point melancholically said: “This is our homeland too.” That’s a fact that many of their Muslim neighbors seemingly ignore. But with only Satnam and Charan remaining, there is a very real danger that the Sikhs will disappear from Lashkar Gah and – even though there are still Sikh communities in places such as Ghazni, Kabul, and Nangarhar – maybe also from Afghanistan as a whole, especially as those other communities are not that numerous anymore. The U.S. State Department report from 2017 cited estimates that there are only 245 Sikh and Hindu families with about 1,300 individuals left in Afghanistan. However, Satnam has not yet lost all hope. “I hope that the situation will become good again. Then, other Sikhs might return. After all, some of the ones that left did not sell their houses, but have only rented them out.” Franz J. Marty is a freelance journalist based in Afghanistan. He writes on a broad range of topics, but focuses on security and military issues. Follow him on twitter: @franzjmarty. https://thediplomat.com/2018/09/the-last-2-sikhs-in-the-talibans-heartland/
  9. Pakistan has strongly condemned the recent attack on the afghan Sikh leadership. And it does seems to me a bit far fetched for indian media and establishment to be making the case that Pakistani ISI is funding and giving orders to armed islamic groups that deliberately target tiny significant powerless religious non-muslim minorities. It would also be against their interests for patriotic pro-pakistani Sikhs or afghan Sikhs to be attacked also it also defames pakistans image in the eyes of non-muslim international community and the global Sikh community especially khalistan minded Sikhs. But maybe it is pakistani ISI or maybe its another foreign power hostile to pakistan's national interests? or Maybe its rogue evil islamic elements within pakistani ISI's funding structure that zealously wants all non-sunni muslims eliminated. So who would be the ones funding these murderers? why do they target peaceful sikh populations who have not harmed the muslim majority in anyway or posed any threat to them. Same thing happened in kashmir march 2000.... bill Clinton went over for a visit and a few days later 40 kashmiri Sikhs were murdered gunned down next to the walls of a gurdwara (https://www.nytimes.com/2000/12/31/magazine/a-kashmiri-mystery.html ).... and the following year later 9/11 happened in america. Who in your view is using the lives of innocent Sikhs as a pawn to be played in their geo-political games. I personally don't think its Indian RAW as kashmiri brahmin hindu's were ethnically cleansed from kashmir in 1990s and still unable to return before the kashmiri Sikh massacre happened. It seems the vast majority of funding for these global salafi caliphate wanting Islamic extremists is coming from arab middle east (including salafi saudi and jewish israeli mossad)and/or British and other western intelligence agencies. We need to look back in history who funded the Muslim salafi wahaabi jihadis against Sikhs in 19th century? It was the British intelligence agents who funded the wahaabi sect of islam and thus the indian born sayed bralevi converted to this brand of islam while on hajj there he also received funds from the British to destablish Sikh rule in north west part of the Sikh empire. So this sayed brelvi British funded islamic extremist puppet along with his band of muslim m0rons declared a jihad against Sikhs but were eventually caught and massacred in battle of balakot by the Khalsa army along with help of local muslim pathan tribesmen who had grown tired of his strict islamic and unjust reign of terror on them. Perhaps the clues to the recent attacks on afghan, pakistani and kashmir Sikhs is laying back in history...
  10. Personally I don't see his idea happening anytime soon. But at least someone is actively talking about hard hitting solutions and bringing some justice to the shaheed's.
  11. In all the negativity surrounding this tragic event in jalalabad, afghanistan we should pause and also reflect on the shahadat of our brave afghan sikh brothers. We should lionise and glorify shaheed avtar singh who proved to be a brave real Khalsa in a world where not many so called hippy liberal telly tubby yoga 3HO chai samosa jalebi Khalsa's are worthy of their khalsa last name these days. We saw many real Khalsa's give their lives for sikhi and Sikh kaum in ancient past and more recently in 1940s then 1980s 90s punjab ... the strong visionary leaders and warriors for Sikhi, gems of the kaum. This Khalsa stated even if he and his whole family gets killed fighting for the rights of afghan Sikhs he would not stop campaigning such was the desperation of the conditions they were suffering and enduring under tyrannical islamic subjugation and rule. Even knowing his life was under grave threat he still did what he had to do peacefully campaigning for equal human rights. His legacy must not be allowed to be forgotten, this event should be the revolution the revives the khalsa martial fighting spirit in afghan Sikhs as they have nothing to lose now. My salute and up-most respect to him Parnaam Shaheeda Nu ============================ IANS, 18 Jun, 2018 Avtar Singh Khalsa will represent Afghanistan’s tiny Sikh and Hindu minority in the next parliament, where he says he hopes to serve the entire country. Few Afghans are as invested in the government’s quest for peace and stability as the dwindling Sikh and Hindu minorities, which have been decimated by decades of conflict. The community numbered more than 80,000 in the 1970s, but today only around 1,000 remain. Khalsa, a Sikh and longtime leader of the community, will run unopposed for a seat in the lower house of parliament that was apportioned to the minority by a presidential decree in 2016. After the October election, he will be a solitary voice among 259 legislators, but hopes his 10 years of service in the Afghan army can help him secure a seat on the defence and security committee. “I want to serve not only my Sikh and Hindu brothers. I have to be able to serve all Afghan people, no matter which ethnicity or group they belong to. Our services must reach everyone,” he told during an interview inside a colourfully decorated temple in Kabul. The 52-year-old father of four, originally from the eastern Paktia province, has lived most of his life in Kabul. He also served as a senator representing the minority, which has long had a seat in the upper house of parliament. Sikhs and Hindus have been driven out of many areas by heavy fighting. They have suffered widespread discrimination in the conservative Muslim country and have also been targeted by Islamic extremists. Under Taliban rule in the late 1990s, they were asked to identify themselves by wearing yellow armbands, but the rule was not enforced. In recent years, large numbers of Sikhs and Hindus have sought asylum in India, which has a Hindu majority and a large Sikh population. “We must try to save our people from this chaos,” Khalsa said. “By any means and at any cost we must ask for our rights from the government. Your rights will not be given to you, you must earn them,” Khalsa said. Khalsa will join parliament at a time when the Afghan government is struggling against a resurgent Taliban and an Islamic State affiliate. The Taliban have seized a number of districts across the country, and IS has carried out a wave of attacks in recent months targeting the country’s Shiite Muslims, another embattled minority. Sikhs and Hindus would face renewed persecution under the Taliban and wholesale slaughter at the hands of the more radical IS. But Khalsa said he had no plans to leave the country and would continue to fight for his community’s survival. “I sacrifice myself for those of my brothers who have been through all kinds of pain and suffering,” he said. “I don’t care if I lose my whole family and get killed for this cause. I will struggle until I get their rights.” https://www.darpanmagazine.com/news/international/sikh-leader-avtar-singh-khalsa-holds-out-hope-for-dwindling-minority-in-afghanistan/
  12. Hundreds of Afghan asylum seekers snuck into the UK using British Sikhs' passports - because turbans on ID photos meant border officials couldn't spot the difference Border officials are said to have difficulty distinguishing between the illegal immigrants and genuine passport holders because of turbans in ID documents Daljit Kapoor, 41, Harmit Kapoor, 40, and Davinder Chawla appeared in court They provided Sikhs from Afghanistan with passports of family members By Anthony Joseph for MailOnline Published: 16:36, 14 March 2017 | Updated: 18:20, 14 March 2017 Border officials are said to have difficulty distinguishing between the illegal immigrants and genuine passport holders because Sikh men are allowed to wear turbans in their ID documents Hundreds of Afghan asylum seekers snuck into the UK using British Sikhs' passports - because turbans on their photos meant border officials couldn't spot the difference. Border officials are said to have difficulty distinguishing between the illegal immigrants and genuine passport holders because Sikh men are allowed to wear turbans in their ID documents. Today three Sikh men Daljit Kapoor, 41, Harmit Kapoor, 40, and Davinder Chawla, 42, admitted running a scam providing Sikhs from the war-torn country with passports of family members who most looked like them so they could pass themselves off as British citizens. Around 30 people from the same Afghans Sikh community are said to have successfully claimed asylum after paying the trio £12,000 per family to enter the UK. But the authorities believe there may be hundreds more as the scam is believed to have gone on for a number of years undetected. The three will be sentenced at Inner London Crown Court later this month for their part in the smuggling racket. A gang member would drive to Paris with genuine passports of family members and hand them over to men, women and children so they could get through airport security. Once in the country the gang retrieved the passports and reused them with new groups and families. The gang is also understood to have operated from Thailand. It was not until easyJet staff noticed something was wrong and alerted French authorities that the conspiracy was unearthed. In June 2014 Chawla drove to France and boarded a flight with around 11 Afghan Sikhs, making up three families, but were stopped when they entered the UK. Edward Aydin, prosecuting at an earlier hearing at Camberwell Magistrates' Court, said: 'We say these three men are the facilitators in this organisation, this organised crime, where they are using genuine British passport holders within the Sikh community. 'It's a Sikh conspiracy and it's occurring because it's very difficult for the authorities at the border control to distinguish who's who on the passports.' Outside court a legal source said: 'They would get the passports of their relatives and marry them up with the asylum seekers who most looked like them, obviously the beards and turbans made it easier. 'But it was also the women and children as well, whole families were being brought in. 'And once they are here, because they from Afghanistan and are claiming to be persecuted by the Taliban, they can't be sent back. 'They have been doing this for a long time, probably years, and have made a hell of a lot of money doing it, charging around £12,000 per family. 'We don't know for how long because they way they did it is virtually undetectable, there are probably hundreds of people who have come into the country this way that his group have helped. 'It was only when easyJet staff noticed something was wrong and alerted French authorities that we found out about it.' +2 The three will be sentenced at Inner London Crown Court later this month for their part in the smuggling racket Both Kapoors, of Hounslow, who are cousins, and Chawla, of Isleworth, who is also a member of the same extended family, appeared at Inner London Crown Court and sat in the dock alongside two interpreters. As their trial was about to start, three of the defendants pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy to help asylum seekers to enter the UK illegally between May and June 2014. Harmit Kapoor also admitted booking flights between June 8 and June 21, 2014, for the asylum seekers to get to Britain. Chawla admitted hiring a vehicle to facilitate their entry into the country when he drove to Paris. A fourth suspect, Joginder Dawan, 41, pleaded not guilty to one count of conspiracy to help asylum seekers enter the UK and one charge of assisting the offence by allowing his passport to be used to book flights and travel. Not guilty verdicts were recorded for both counts and he was discharged. In February 2011 Chawla, along with four other men was jailed for five years for also helping illegal immigrants enter the country as part of an identical conspiracy. The gang was given a total of 26 years between them.
  13. Hundreds of Afghan asylum seekers snuck into the UK using British Sikhs' passports - because turbans on ID photos meant border officials couldn't spot the difference Border officials are said to have difficulty distinguishing between the illegal immigrants and genuine passport holders because of turbans in ID documents Daljit Kapoor, 41, Harmit Kapoor, 40, and Davinder Chawla appeared in court They provided Sikhs from Afghanistan with passports of family members By Anthony Joseph for MailOnline Published: 16:36, 14 March 2017 | Updated: 18:20, 14 March 2017 Border officials are said to have difficulty distinguishing between the illegal immigrants and genuine passport holders because Sikh men are allowed to wear turbans in their ID documents Hundreds of Afghan asylum seekers snuck into the UK using British Sikhs' passports - because turbans on their photos meant border officials couldn't spot the difference. Border officials are said to have difficulty distinguishing between the illegal immigrants and genuine passport holders because Sikh men are allowed to wear turbans in their ID documents. Today three Sikh men Daljit Kapoor, 41, Harmit Kapoor, 40, and Davinder Chawla, 42, admitted running a scam providing Sikhs from the war-torn country with passports of family members who most looked like them so they could pass themselves off as British citizens. Around 30 people from the same Afghans Sikh community are said to have successfully claimed asylum after paying the trio £12,000 per family to enter the UK. But the authorities believe there may be hundreds more as the scam is believed to have gone on for a number of years undetected. The three will be sentenced at Inner London Crown Court later this month for their part in the smuggling racket. A gang member would drive to Paris with genuine passports of family members and hand them over to men, women and children so they could get through airport security. Once in the country the gang retrieved the passports and reused them with new groups and families. The gang is also understood to have operated from Thailand. It was not until easyJet staff noticed something was wrong and alerted French authorities that the conspiracy was unearthed. In June 2014 Chawla drove to France and boarded a flight with around 11 Afghan Sikhs, making up three families, but were stopped when they entered the UK. Edward Aydin, prosecuting at an earlier hearing at Camberwell Magistrates' Court, said: 'We say these three men are the facilitators in this organisation, this organised crime, where they are using genuine British passport holders within the Sikh community. 'It's a Sikh conspiracy and it's occurring because it's very difficult for the authorities at the border control to distinguish who's who on the passports.' Outside court a legal source said: 'They would get the passports of their relatives and marry them up with the asylum seekers who most looked like them, obviously the beards and turbans made it easier. 'But it was also the women and children as well, whole families were being brought in. 'And once they are here, because they from Afghanistan and are claiming to be persecuted by the Taliban, they can't be sent back. 'They have been doing this for a long time, probably years, and have made a hell of a lot of money doing it, charging around £12,000 per family. 'We don't know for how long because they way they did it is virtually undetectable, there are probably hundreds of people who have come into the country this way that his group have helped. 'It was only when easyJet staff noticed something was wrong and alerted French authorities that we found out about it.' +2 The three will be sentenced at Inner London Crown Court later this month for their part in the smuggling racket Both Kapoors, of Hounslow, who are cousins, and Chawla, of Isleworth, who is also a member of the same extended family, appeared at Inner London Crown Court and sat in the dock alongside two interpreters. As their trial was about to start, three of the defendants pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy to help asylum seekers to enter the UK illegally between May and June 2014. Harmit Kapoor also admitted booking flights between June 8 and June 21, 2014, for the asylum seekers to get to Britain. Chawla admitted hiring a vehicle to facilitate their entry into the country when he drove to Paris. A fourth suspect, Joginder Dawan, 41, pleaded not guilty to one count of conspiracy to help asylum seekers enter the UK and one charge of assisting the offence by allowing his passport to be used to book flights and travel. Not guilty verdicts were recorded for both counts and he was discharged. In February 2011 Chawla, along with four other men was jailed for five years for also helping illegal immigrants enter the country as part of an identical conspiracy. The gang was given a total of 26 years between them.
  14. http://www.asianimage.co.uk/news/14562428.Lorry_drivers_jailed_for_trafficking_run_in_which_man_died_in_front_of_family/
  15. We need to help these people https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=mIRwQkV0cWA https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Z_sJmR_FYn8
  16. Just saw this on my social media feed. http://www.echo-news.co.uk/news/11415007.TILBURY_DEATH_LATEST__Local_Sikhs_help_Afghani_victims/
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