Sikh Man Shot Dead In Peshawar; Second Attack In Two Days

A Sikh shopkeeper was shot dead by unidentified gunmen in Rashidgarhi Bazaar of Peshawar in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) province, in the latest incident of targeted attacks against minority communities in Pakistan.

The man, identified as Manmohan Singh (32), was on his way to the interior city area of Peshawar from Rasheed Garhi, a suburban locality of Peshawar, when some armed men attacked him near Guldara Chowk Kakshal, which comes under the jurisdiction of Yakka Toot police station.

Singh was shifted to a hospital where he was pronounced dead by the doctors, police said.

This is the second incident of armed attack on a Sikh man in the Yakka Toot area in the last 48 hours. A Sikh man was injured after he sustained bullet wounds on his legs on Friday.

About 15,000 Sikhs live in Peshawar, mostly in the Jogan Shah neighbourhood of the provincial capital Peshawar.

Most of the members of the Sikh community in Peshawar are involved in business, while some also have pharmacies.

In September last year, a well-known Sikh 'hakeem' (Unani medicine practitioner) was shot dead by unidentified gunmen inside his clinic in Peshawar.

United Sikhs said that they will be meeting the Pakistan consulate with other groups to seek the state department's intervention to protect the rights of minorities in Pakistan.

"We are appalled by these targeted attacks on Sikh men in Pakistan. These attacks are not only horrific, but they are also a violation of human rights. We call on the Pakistani government to do everything in its power to bring the perpetrators of these attacks to justice," the group said.

"This pattern is very scary and seems to be part of a nefarious conspiracy. Sikhs have lived as a minority in Pakistan in peace since 1947. All of a sudden, we have these deadly attacks on hard-working Sikhs? Who is behind them? What is the message? The Pakistan Government needs to investigate this on an emergency basis and put an immediate stop to this attempt of Ethnic Cleansing," it added.

"We also call on the international community to stand with the Sikh community in Pakistan. These attacks are not only an attack on the Sikh community, but they are also an attack on the values of tolerance and respect for all people," it said.

"We offer our deepest condolences to the family and friends of Manmohan Singh. We pray for his soul and for the safety of all Sikhs in Pakistan," the group said.

"Our team in Pakistan will continue working with impacted families to offer relief. Here's a link to read more about our work with families who lost their loved ones to targeted violence in the last couple years in Pakistan," it said.