Tribune News Service

New Delhi, August 9

Congress leader and spokesperson Jaiveer Shergill on Monday wrote to the Centre demanding immediate evacuation of Sikhs and Hindus stranded in Afghanistan and said special visas be granted to them.

Bajwa writes to PM

Congress MP Partap Singh Bajwa on Monday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, flagging the recent forcible removal of the Nishan Sahib from Gurdwara Tahla Sahib in Afghanistan’s Paktia province and urged the government to protect minorities

In a letter to External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar today, Shergill, who hails from Jalandhar, condemned recent attacks on a gurdwara in Afghanistan and said, “As you are more than aware, the Taliban offensive has escalated in Afghanistan post the US withdrawal of troops and they are fighting at gunpoint to turn the country once again into a hub for transnational terrorism. The current catastrophic trajectory of violence has caused a humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan, thus risking the lives of people, including those from India. As per information in public domain, around 650 Sikhs and 50 Hindus are stuck in Afghanistan and have become sitting targets for the Taliban adamant to kill minorities belonging to Indian origin. There have been numerous episodes of attacks on minorities of Indian origin.” Meanwhile, Shergill later issued a statement saying his letter was not an endorsement of the CAA.