Punjab outraged over Sikh killings in Pak

The decapitation of two Sikhs by Taliban in Pakistan evoked sharp condemnation in Punjab with political parties, top sikh religious bodies and the Akal Takht terming the incident as barbaric and an outrage against humanity.

The ruling Shiromani Akali Dal demanded immediate intervention of the prime minister in ensuring the safety and security of the Sikhs in Pakistan as its ally BJP staged a vociferous protest at the Attari border.

Terming the killings as an outrage against humanity, SAD supremo and Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal asked the Union government to put the issue on the agenda of upcoming foreign secretary-level talks between India and Pakistan.

"Prime Minister Manmohan Singh should intervene to secure the release of remaining members of the Sikh community held hostage by the Taliban," Badal said in a statement in Chandigarh.

Badal urged Singh to use all diplomatic channels in ensuring the safety and security of the Sikhs abroad. Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal asked the prime minister to take up the issue of beheading of the two Sikhs with his Pakistani counterpart.

The Akal Takht, the supreme temporal seat of the Sikhs, and the SGPC, the apex religious body of the community, termed the killings as barbaric. Akal Takht Jathedar Gyani Gurbachan Singh said "the Sikhs worldwide are deeply hurt by this barbaric incident.The Pakistan government should take all necessary steps to ensure the safety and security of the Sikhs living in that country."

Condemning the incident as brutal, SGPC chief Avtar Singh said "the prime minister should take up the matter with Pakistan and ask it to provide adequate security to the Sikh community." Ravneet Singh Bittu, a Congress MP from Anandpur Sahib, said he would raise the issue in the ongoing session of Parliament.

Shiromani Akali Dal (Amritsar) chief Simranjit Singh Mann described the incident as "barbaric and inhuman". "Taliban has once again shown its monster face by targeting innocent Sikhs," he said.