Islamabad, Pakistan:
Two Sikh shopkeepers were shot dead by unidentified assailants on Sunday morning in the Bata Tal bazaar in Peshawar. Local police said the assailants escaped after the target killing.
The two Sikh men died on the spot after assailants opened fire on the victims while riding a motorcycle, The Express Tribune newspaper reported. The rights group said the Pakistan government must make it clear that violence against religious minorities will not be tolerated.
“HRCP strongly condemns the murder of two Sikh men, who were gunned down in #Peshawar. This is not the first time that the Sikh community in KP has been targeted and we demand that the KP police identify and arrest the perpetrators promptly,” the HRCP said in a tweet.
“The government must make it clear that violence against religious minorities will not be tolerated,” the group added.
According to the HRCP, hundreds of people die in target killings, military operations and various other incidents of high-degree violence. Those killed included citizens including women and members of religious minorities, politicians, security personnel and militants.
India’s Union Housing Minister Hardeep Singh Puri also condemned the “dastardly” killing of two members of the Sikh Sangat. He said acts like these clearly amplify the dangers that religious minorities face in our volatile neighbourhood.
“Deeply saddened to hear about the dastardly killing of two members of the Sikh Sangat in Pakistan’s Peshawar. Acts like these clearly amplify the dangers that religious minorities face in our volatile neighbourhood and the necessity for humane measures like CAA,” Puri said in a tweet.
