Peshawar : An elderly Sikh couple was shot dead by unknown assailants inside a gurdwara in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on Wednesday. The two people who were killed were the caretakers of the gurdwara in Babu Mohalla, Khwaja Ganj Bazaar in Mardan. They were 70-year-old Jagannath and his wife, Asma Wanti.
The attackers entered the gurdwara, located about 60 km northwest of Peshawar, and fatally shot the elderly couple before fleeing the scene. Although a police guard had been assigned to protect the gurdwara, he was reportedly absent when the attack took place. Investigators also found that while CCTV cameras had been installed at the site, the digital video recorder was not working, making it harder to identify the attackers. According to reports, the gunmen remain at large.
Reacting to the incident, BJP leaders strongly condemned the killing and expressed concern over the safety of religious minorities in Pakistan. Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Kuldip Singh Gargajj also denounced the attack inside the gurdwara. He urged Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Muhammad Sohail Khan Afridi to take immediate action, arrest those responsible, and ensure strict punishment for the culprits, according to PTI.
BJP National General Secretary Tarun Chugh condemned the killings and said that Pakistan has consistently failed to uphold commitments made under the Nehru-Liaquat Pact of 1950, which guaranteed the protection of minorities in both India and Pakistan. “The worsening security situation has turned [Khyber] Pakhtunkhwa into a killing field. People are being killed with impunity while those in power remain silent,” Gohar wrote on X.
The assailants managed to flee the scene after committing the crime. The bodies of the couple were shifted to the District Headquarters Hospital in Mardan, according to The News International. Senior police officials, including Mardan District Police Officer Masood Ahmad and SSP (Investigations) Maria Mustafa, visited the crime scene and collected evidence. Police said investigations were underway from multiple angles and efforts were being made to identify and arrest those responsible.
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