Afghan Sikh leader holds out hope for dwindling minority
Avtar Singh Khalsa will represent Afghanistan’s tiny Sikh and Hindu minority in the next Parliament, where he says he hopes to serve the entire country.
Few Afghans are as invested in the government’s quest for peace and stability as the dwindling Sikh and Hindu minorities. The community numbered more than 80,000 in the 1970s, but today only around 1,000 remain.
Khalsa, a Sikh and longtime leader of the community, will run unopposed for a seat in the lower house of parliament that was apportioned to the minority by presidential decree in 2016. After the October election, he will be a solitary voice among 259 legislators, but hopes his 10 years of service in the Afghan Army can help him secure a seat on the defence and security committee.
“I have to be able to serve all the Afghan people, no matter which ethnicity or group they belong to. Our services must reach everyone,” he said.
The 52-year-old has lived most of his life in Kabul. He also served as a senator representing the minority, which has long had a seat in the upper house of Parliament.
Sikhs and Hindus have been driven out of many areas by heavy fighting. They have suffered widespread discrimination in the country and have also been targeted by Islamic extremists.
“We must try to save our people from this chaos,” Khalsa said. “By any means and at any cost we must ask for our rights from the government. Your rights will not be given to you, you must earn them.”