Forced conversion of Sikhs in Pak taken up with UN

Source http://www.punjabnewsline.com
Thusday,March18,2010

PATIALA: Sikh Nation Organization has raised with United Nations the issue of “undeterred forced converhsion of minority communities in Pakistan” as a result of ‘Shariah Nizam-e-Adl-2009 Regulation’ and continued situation of grave and sustained violation of internationally guaranteed Human Rights, through a petition by invoking Special Procedure of the Human Rights Council.

Dr. Manjit Singh Randhawa, President of the Sikh Body disclosed here today that the issue of forced conversions in Pakistan as direct fall out of ‘Shariah Nizam-e-Adl-2009 Regulation’ has been focused with “execution by beheading” of two Sikhs (Jaspal Singh and Mehal Singh) for refusing to embrace Islam. Sikh body demanded immediate repeal of the controversial Regulation.

The intents of arbitrary dictates that are possible under the powers bestowed upon tyrant ‘Taliban Rulers by Law of Pakistan’, through this regulation stood amply exposed with forcible cutting of hair of other two Sikh captives (Surjit Singh and Gurvinder Singh) to convert them to Islam, who were rescued/escaped or “released with warning to the Sikh Community in Pak.”

The release of Sikh captives was claimed to have occurred as a result of the “rescue operation” by the Pak Army, but intriguingly no details of the operation were officially provided all these days despite the announcement. Though Gurvinder Singh 17 years has supported the rescue version due to obvious reasons, but community sources tell a different story, said Dr. Randhawa.

Dr. Randhawa disclosed that reliable community sources revealed to the Sikh body that they were “released to convey looming peril to all members of Sikh Community” to “either convert to Islam/pay ‘Jiziya’ per head at the rate fixed by ‘Taliban-Rulers’ or be ready to face dreadful future in Pak.”

They were kidnapped “not for ransom but to recover exorbitant ‘Jiziya’ from the Sikh Community.” During captivity they were coerced, tortured and threatened with life, their unshorn hair were forcibly cut to convert them to Islam.

Sources further revealed that the area of captivity is thickly infested with heavily armed Taliban with sophisticated “ground to air strike modern weaponry” that can easily bang any “helicopter” and is practically invincible for any such rescue operation.

That precisely is the reason to prefer drone operations in such areas over extremely fatal conventional air or ground operations, that is why Pak Army chose not to officially provide any details of the “rescue operation,” he added.