In an unusual move, a prominent Muslim organisation whose members include clerics and Islamic scholars has sought Pakistan’s one of the top civilian awards ‘Tamgha-i-Imtiaz’ for slain Sikh lawmaker Sardar Soran Singh.
At a meeting organised here on Monday by Pakistan Ulema Council to pay homage to the services of Singh, its chairman Hafiz Tahir Ashrafi highlighted the struggle the prominent lawmaker made for interfaith harmony and elimination of terrorism in the country, the Dawn reported.
“We demand that the government announce ‘Tamgha-i-Imtiaz’ to Singh,” Mr. Ashrafi said, as he condemned the killing.
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The award is the fourth-highest decoration given to any civilian in Pakistan based on their achievements.
Singh (58), the Special Assistant to Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) on Minority Affairs, was assassinated in Pir Baba area of Buner district in the province when he was going back to his home after a routine walk last week.
“Singh sacrificed his family for the cause of Pakistan,” Mr. Ashrafi said, referring to the lawmaker’s refusal to leave the country along with his wife, who took divorce and settled in India.
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Christian leader and Pakistan Interfaith Organisation president Sajid Ishaq said Pakistan belonged to non-Muslims as it did to the Muslim population.
Bishop Mazhar Ishaq said it was a ray of hope for non-Muslims in Pakistan that people from different schools of thought and religions had united against the killing of Singh.
The speakers expressed their resolve to initiate a campaign against terrorism, extremism, sectarian violence and corruption, the paper said.
Singh was a doctor, TV anchor and politician. Before joining PTI in 2011, Singh was a member of Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan for nine years. He was also member of Tehsil council, Pakistan Sikh Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee and Evacuee Trust Property Board.