PAK SIKHS WANT MARRIAGE BILL FOR COMMUNITY IN KHYBER

PESHAWAR: The Sikh community in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has demanded the provincial government to introduce a Sikh marriage bill in order to solve various legal problems faced by the community.

The Express Tribune quoted a local Sikh elder, Gorpal Singh, as saying that said the Pakistan Punjab assembly has already introduced a bill and it is high time for the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa assembly to follow suit.

“We are faced with a lot of problems. When we open a bank account we are asked to give name of heir. As there is no registration of Sikh marriages it is very difficult to prove inheritance,” he said.

Singh added that there is also no specific rule to resolve domestic issues in the traditional and religious way if a couple goes to court.

Asserting that Sikh is religion different from the Hinduism, he said that some people confuse us with the Hindu community and also emphasised that the Hindu marriage bill or act can’t be applied on us.

Singh said that the Sikh community was recently told by some officials that the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government was keen on taking a decision on the issue and they really welcomed the proposal.

He suggested the local Sikh community should be taken into confidence prior to the tabling of the bill as there is no representative of the Sikh community in the provincial assembly.

Another Sikh leader Amarjit Singh also welcomed any move on part of the government to solve problems of the community through fresh legislation.

The largest Sikh population in Pakistan is found in Peshawar, in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.