Leaders across party lines flay attack, ask Pak to take action

As row erupted over the mob attack on the Nankana Sahib Gurdwara, the birthplace of Guru Nanak, in Pakistan, politicians across party lines came forward on Saturday

As row erupted over the mob attack on the Nankana Sahib Gurdwara, the birthplace of Guru Nanak, in Pakistan, politicians across party lines came forward on Saturday to criticise the incident and called for peace among the two neighbouring countries.

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MALIK QUESTIONS SIDHU’S SILENCE

Amritsar: Condemning the attack, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Punjab unit chief and Rajya Sabha MP Shwait Malik questioned the silence of former Punjab minister Navjot Singh Sidhu over the attack on Gurdwara Nankana Sahib, the shrine built at the birthplace of Guru Nanak.

“Why is Sidhu now silent when the Sikh community is being attacked in Pakistan?” he asked, adding: “Why the person (Sidhu), who hugged Imran Khan and Pakistan army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa, is not saying anything on the matter?.

BJP workers also staged a protest at Hathi Gate in the city and burnt an effigy of Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan.

REPREHENSIBLE ACT, SAYS RAHUL

New Delhi: Former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi condemned the incident, saying bigotry is dangerous and love is its only known antidote. “The attack on Nankana Sahab is reprehensible and must be condemned unequivocally, he said in a tweet.

Expressing dismay and concern over the attack on the gurdwara, Congress president Sonia Gandhi called upon the Government of India to immediately take up the issue with Pakistani authorities to ensure safety of pilgrims and adequate security for the shrine to prevent any future attacks. “The Government of India should also press for immediate registration of case, arrest and action against the culprits,” she said in a statement.

ACT AGAINST CHIEF INSTIGATOR: SUKHBIR

Condemning the attack, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal said it was shocking that the local administration in Nankana Sahib remained a mute spectator to the violence unleashed by the mob which tried to gate crash into the gurdwara compound and indulged in inflammatory speeches. Sukhbir said in the interest of justice, “the Pakistan government should also act against chief instigator Mohammad Hassan who was responsible for the abduction of minor Sikh girl Jagjit Kaur, and who led the attack on the gurdwara”.

PAK PM’S EFFIGY BURNT IN SANGRUR

Sangrur: Sangrur BJP chief Randeep Deol led a march in the district and burnt an effigy of the Pakistan PM. “The attack on Nankana Sahib Gurdwara proves that minorities are not safe in Pakistan,” said Deol.

KHATTAR CONDEMNS ATTACK

Karnal: Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar condemned the attack on the Nankana Sahib Gurdwara and termed it a shameful act. “While the Sikhs of Pakistan were treated in such a manner, the Pak Prime Minister was busy in spreading lies. For how long the minorities living in Pakistan would have to bear such ill-treatment?” he said in a tweet.

Haryana minister of state for sports and Olympian Sandeep Singh said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi should build pressure on his Pakistan counterpart for action against the people involved in forcible conversion of members of minority communities in Pakistan.

Meanwhile, members of the Sikh community hit the streets at Kurukshetra and gathered at Gurdwara Chhevin Patshahi and raised anti-Pakistan slogans.

DSGMC, SAD PROTEST NEAR PAK HIGH COMMISSION

New Delhi: Members of the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (DSGMC) and the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on Saturday staged a protest near the Pakistan high commission in New Delhi over a mob attack on Gurdwara Nankana Sahib.

The protest by DSGMC and Akali members was held around 1pm near Chanakyapuri, an affluent neighbourhood and diplomatic enclave in the city. The protestors raised slogans against Pakistan and Prime Minister Imran Khan.

The protesters submitted a memorandum at the Pakistan high commission, asking Islamabad to “explain the failure of law enforcing agencies” in the country.

VHP URGES UN TO TAKE COGNISANCE

Coimbatore: The Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) urged the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) to take cognisance of the attack on Sikh shrine in Pakistan. It also highlighted the plight of the minorities in the neighbouring nations, and proposed a separate law for Sri Lankan Tamils as well, if the need arises.

KEJRIWAL SLAMS PAK

New Delhi: Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal asked Pakistan to take strict action against the people involved in the attack. He also stated that persecution of Sikhs there will not be tolerated by India. “The attack on Nankana Sahib in Pakistan is a very cowardly and shameful incident,” he said in a tweet.

HARBHAJAN EXPRESSES CONCERN

Chandigarh: Cricketer Harbhajan Singh on Saturday expressed concern over a mob attack on the revered Gurdwara Nankana Sahib in Pakistan and urged Prime Minister Imran Khan to intervene. The veteran off-spinner shared on Twitter two videos of Mohammad Hassan, who was leading the mob and threatening to build a mosque in place of the historic Sikh shrine.