PESHAWAR, Pakistan—In an unfortunate incident on May 29, a renowned Pakistani Sikh Charnjit Singh was shot dead by an unidentified assailant. 52 years old Charnjit Singh was attacked inside his store situated in Scheme Chowk area lying on the outskirts of Peshawar. He had been running this store in Peshawar from long time and was an active Human rights activist there.
Sources have informed that the victim had been living in Peshawar for decades but his family hailed from the Kurram tribal region.
It is pertinent to note here that most Sikhs living in Peshawar are members of families that previously resided in different parts of the erstwhile Federally Administered Tribal Areas who shifted to the city after the law and order situation deteriorated. Most of them run petty businesses and live in Mohalla Jogan Shah, where an old Gurdwara Sahib is located.
Sikhs in some parts of northwest Pakistan are being targeted continuously by some militant groups like Taliban from some years to force them to pay Jiziya or an Islamic tax. Members of the Sikh families are also often kidnapped and killed there.
