Taliban working to return land to Afghan Sikhs and Hindus

There are several indications that the Taliban government in Afghanistan is working towards the returning of lands to Sikhs and Hindus that were usurped from them.

This comes amid reports that Narendra Singh Khalsa, the representative of Hindus and Sikhs in the former Afghan parliament, has returned to Afghanistan from Canada.

Most of the land was grabbed from Hindus and Sikhs by Taliban warlords during the earlier Afghan regime.

The Land-Grabbing Prevention and Restitution Commission has started looking into cases of land takovers belonging to Hindu and Sikh communities across the Islamic Emirate, reported Kabul-based Ariana News on March 10.

A month following the initiation by the Taliban’s Ministry of Justice, the Taliban has started restoring properties to the displaced Sikhs and Hindus across the country, The Hindu reported.

“A commission chaired by the Minister of Justice has been established to return to their owners all properties which had been usurped by warlords during the former regime,” Suhail Shaheen, Head of the Political Office of the Taliban, told The Hindu.

“Hindu and Sikh representatives have engaged in numerous meetings with Taliban officials in Kabul over the past nearly three years. They have expressed concerns about the usurpation of their lands and have urged the Taliban to address the issue,” according to Afghanistan International.

Indian officials viewed this development as a positive gesture towards India, according to The Times of India.

ATTACKS MADE HINDUS, SIKHS FLEE AFGHANISTAN

The attack on a Gurdwara in Kabul in 2022, which was claimed by the Islamist terror group IS, made some of the last Afghan Hindus and Sikhs flee the country.

Many of the Sikhs and Hindus fleeing Afghanistan sought refuge in India and the government airlifted batches of Afghan minorities and Indians from the country.

With increasing attacks on the minority population, most Sikhs and Hindus, who comprised 1% of the Afghan population, had left the country.

The attacks on Afghanistan’s minority Hindus and Sikhs increased as the Taliban started taking control of the war-ravaged country in 2021.

Gurdwaras became the targets of frequent attacks.

The final blow was the attack on the historic Kart-e-Parwan Gurdwara in Kabul.

Many of the last few Sikhs fled Afghanistan after the Ashraf Ghani government was ousted and the Taliban took over.

REPRESENTATIVE OF SIKHS, HINDUS RETURNS TO KABUL

The Afghanistan International portal reported on April 9 the return of Narendra Singh Khalsa, the only representative of Hindus and Sikhs in the former Afghan Parliament.

“The Taliban’s Commission for Return and Communication with former Afghan officials announced that Narendra Singh Khalsa, the representative of Hindus and Sikhs in the former Afghan parliament, has returned to the country from Canada,” it reported.

The report of Khalsa’s return to Afghanistan is significant amid reports that the Taliban government is working to restore usurped land to Hindus and Sikhs.