India has granted e-visas to around 100 Sikhs and Hindus in Afghanistan, following the brutal attack on Karte Parwan Gurdwara in Kabul on Saturday that resulted in the death of two persons. The Indian government has assured that e- visas will be provided on priority.
According to the sources from the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), the decision was taken late last night.
The Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP) on Sunday claimed the responsibility for the Karte Parwan Gurdwara attack in Kabul. ISKP released a statement owning the attacks. According to the group, ‘Abu Mohammed al Tajiki’ carried out the attack which lasted for three hours.
Further delving into the details, the group claimed that besides submachine guns and hand grenades, four IEDs and a car bomb were also used in the attack.
ISKP has claimed themselves to be responsible for the deaths of 50 Hindu Sikhs and Taliban members who were killed in the attack and the attack was conducted as revenge for the insult of Prophet Mohammed by an Indian politician.
However, official figures tell that only two people were killed and seven others were wounded.
The derogatory statement made by Nupur Sharma had put the international relations of India with the Arab countries in jeopardy. A statement was issued by concerned quarters focusing on the importance of respecting all religions and denouncing insult to any religious personality or demeaning any religion or sect. BJP on Sunday suspended its spokesperson Nupur Sharma from the party’s primary membership and expelled its Delhi media head Naveen Kumar Jindal after their alleged inflammatory remarks against minorities.
The attack that took place on Saturday, killed two civilians, including a Sikh man and a Muslim security guard.
Initial investigation into the attack suggests that an explosion occurred outside the Gurdwara gate, killing at least two people. Following that, another explosion took place which was later heard from inside the complex and some shops attached to the Gurdwara caught fire.
The visuals being circulated on the social media show the partially burnt holy Guru Granth Sahib from Gurudwara in Afghanistan’s capital city Kabul was retrieved from the complex.
Visuals show a barefoot man carrying the Guru Granth Sahib on his head. The video shows two or three more people, all walking without footwear accompanying him.
The Sikh religion considers the Guru Granth Sahib to be a living Guru and has strict rules in handling or changing its position. The sacred Guru Granth Sahib is carried on the head, and the person walks barefoot.
According to reports, the Holy Book was taken to the residence of Gurnam Singh, president, of Gurdwara Karte Parwan.
Afghanistan has been at the helm of extremist groups and has a history of terrorising the religious minorities in the country, including the Sikh community, who have been the target of violence in Afghanistan.
In another incident, in October, last year 15 to 20 terrorists entered a Gurdwara in the Kart-e-Parwan District of Kabul and tied up the guards.
In March 2020, a deadly attack took place at Sri Guru Har Rai Sahib Gurudwara in Kabul’s Short Bazaar area in which 27 Sikhs were killed and several were injured. Islamic State terrorists claimed responsibility for the attack.
