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Sikhism in Pakistan

(Redirected from Pakistani Sikhs)

Sikhism in Pakistan has an extensive heritage and history, although Sikhs form a small community in Pakistan today. Most Sikhs live in the province of Punjab, a part of the larger Punjab region where the religion originated in the Middle Ages, with some also residing in Peshawar in the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province. Nankana Sahib, the birthplace of Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhism, is located in Pakistan's Punjab province. Moreover, the place where Guru Nanak died, the Gurudwara Kartarpur Sahib is also located in the same province.

Sikhism in Pakistan Pakistan
Gurdwara Janam Asthan
Total population
15,998 Increase(2023 census)[1]
Regions with significant populations
Punjab5,649
Sindh5,182
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa4,050
Balochistan1,057
Languages
Punjabi • Urdu • Pashto • Sindhi • Balochi • Pakistani English

In the 18th and 19th centuries, the Sikh community became a major political power in Punjab, with Sikh leader Maharaja Ranjit Singh founding the Sikh Empire which had its capital in Lahore, the second-largest city in Pakistan today.[2][3]

According to the 1941 census, the Sikh population comprised roughly 1.67 million persons or 6.1 percent of the total population in the region that would ultimately become Pakistan,[a] notably concentrated in West Punjab, within the contemporary province of Punjab, Pakistan, where the Sikh population stood at roughly 1.52 million persons or 8.8 percent of the total population.[b] At the time of the Partition of India in 1947, it is estimated that the Sikh population increased to over 2 million persons in the region which became Pakistan with significant populations existing in the largest cities in the Punjab such as Lahore, Rawalpindi and Faisalabad (then Lyallpur). After the Partition of Punjab, many Sikhs in Pakistan felt unsafe due to the occurrence of severe riots and mass scale persecution over there; soon, almost the entire Sikh population left Pakistan's West Punjab for India's East Punjab and Delhi.[5][6]

In the decades following Pakistan's formation in 1947, the remaining Sikh community began to re-organize, forming the Pakistan Sikh Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee (PSGPC) to represent the community and protect the holy sites and heritage of the Sikh religion in Pakistan. It is headed by Satwant Singh.[7] The Pakistani government has begun to allow Sikhs from India to make pilgrimages to Sikh places of worship in Pakistan and for Pakistani Sikhs to travel to India.

History

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Colonial era

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Photograph of a Sikh health worker of the Karachi Plague Committee in Old Town, Karachi, by R. Jalbhoy, 1897
 
Gurdwara Dera Sahib, Lahore

Prior to independence in 1947, 2 million Sikhs resided in the present day Pakistan and were spread all across Northern Pakistan, specifically the Punjab region and played an important role in its economy as farmers, businessmen, and traders. Significant populations of Sikhs inhabited the largest cities in the Punjab such as Lahore, Rawalpindi and Lyallpur.

Lahore, the capital of Punjab, was then and still is today the location of many important Sikh religious and historical sites, including the Samadhi of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, who is referred to as Sher-e-Punjab .The nearby town of Nankana Sahib has nine Gurudwaras, and is the birthplace of Sikhism's founder, Guru Nanak Sahib. Each of Nankana Sahib's gurdwaras are associated with different events in Guru Nanak Dev's life. The town remains an important site of pilgrimage for Sikhs worldwide.

Sikh organizations, including the Chief Khalsa Dewan and Shiromani Akali Dal led by Master Tara Singh, condemned the Lahore Resolution and the movement to create Pakistan, viewing it as welcoming possible persecution; the Sikhs largely thus strongly opposed the partition of India.[8]

Partition of India (1947)

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Exterior of Panja Sahib Gurdwara in Hasan Abdal

The majority of the Sikhs and Hindus of West Punjab and Sindh provinces of Pakistan migrated to India after the independence of Pakistan in 1947, resulting in a fraction of the Sikh communities that formerly existed previously. These Sikh and Hindu refugee communities have had a major influence in the culture and economics of the Indian capital city of Delhi. Today, segments of the populations of East Punjab and Haryana states and Delhi in India can trace their ancestry back to towns and villages now in Pakistan, including former Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.[9][10]

Modern era

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Sikhs have mainly kept a low profile within the monolithic Muslim population of Pakistan.[11] Though, Pakistan maintains the title of Islamic state, the articles twenty, twenty-one and twenty-two in chapter two of its constitution guarantees religious freedom to the non-Muslim residents.[12] Since independence in 1947, relations between Pakistan's minorities and the Muslim majority have remained fairly and politically stable.

From 1984 to 2002, Pakistan held a system of separate electorates for all its national legislative assemblies, with only a handful of parliamentary seats reserved for minority members. Minorities were legally only permitted to vote for designated minority candidates in general elections.

The regime of former President General Pervez Musharraf had professed an agenda of equality for minorities and promotion and protection of minority rights, however, the implementation of corrective measures has been slow. Considerable amount of Sikhs are found in neighbourhood called Narayanpura of Karachi's Ranchore Lines.[13][14]

The historical and holy sites of Sikhs are maintained by a Pakistani governmental body, the Pakistan Sikh Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee, which is responsible for their upkeep and preservation.

The emergence of the Sikh community within Pakistan

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Gurdwara in Layallpur-Faisalabad

After the independence of Pakistan and the migration of nearly all Sikhs to India the Sikh community's rights were significantly diminished as their population decreased.[15] Today, the largest urban Sikh population in Pakistan is found in Peshawar, in the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, where the Pashtun law of "nanawati" (protection) spared the scale of violence which had raged across the Indus River in Punjab. Despite the longstanding tensions between the Sikh and Muslim communities in South Asia, the Pashtuns were tolerant towards the religious minority of Sikhs.[16] There are small pockets of Sikhs in Lahore and Nankana Sahib in Punjab.

There has been an influx of Sikhs refugees from Afghanistan to Pakistan due to the turbulent civil war and conflicts that have ravaged neighboring Afghanistan, and many of these Sikhs have settled in Peshawar.[17] Afghanistan, like Pakistan, has had small Sikh and Hindu populations. There has been a massive exodus of refugees from Afghanistan into Pakistan during the past 30 years of turmoil up to the reign of the Taliban and the subsequent US invasion of Afghanistan in late 2001. Due to Pakistan's porous borders with Afghanistan, large numbers of Afghanistan's minority communities, based mainly around the cities of Kabul, Kandahar, and Jalalabad have fled, and some Sikhs have joined their kinsmen in Peshawar and Lahore.[18][19]

The Pakistani Constitution states that Sikhism is a monotheistic religion. Recently the Sikh community within Pakistan has been making every effort possible to progress in Pakistan. For example, Hercharn Singh became the first Sikh to join the Pakistan Army. For the first time in the 58-year history of Pakistan there has a Sikh been selected into Pakistan's army. Prior to Harcharan Singh's selection in the Pakistani army no individual person who was a member of the Hindu or the Sikh community were ever enrolled in the army, however; the Pakistani Christian community has prominently served in the Pakistan Armed Forces and some had even reached the ranks of Major Generals in the army, Air Vice Marshals in the Pakistan Air Force and rear Admiral in the Pakistan Navy. It has received various awards for gallantry and valor. Moreover, members of the tiny Parsi community have some representation in the Armed Forces.[20] Other prominent Sikhs are Inspector Amarjeet Singh of Pakistan Rangers and Lance-naik Behram Singh of Pakistan Coast Guard.[21]

In 2007, the Pakistan Government enacted the Sikh marriage act that allows Sikh marriages in Pakistan be registered.[22][23] In 2017, the Punjab legislative assembly passed the Anand Karaj act thereby allowing the Sikh marriage in Punjab province be registered.[24] In the Sindh province, the Sikh marriages are registered under the Sindh Hindu Marriage Act of 2016.[25]

Demographics

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Further information: Religion in Pakistan § 1941 census, West Punjab § Religion, North-West Frontier Province § Religion, and Baluchistan Agency § Religion

Modern era

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Historical Sikh Population
YearPop.±% p.a.
1941 1,672,753—    
1951 3,612−45.87%
202315,998+2.09%
Source: [a]
Census of India, Census of Pakistan[1]

According to the Government of Pakistan's National Database and Registration Authority, there were 6,146 Sikhs registered in Pakistan in 2012.[26] A 2010 survey by the Sikh Resource and Study Centre reported 50,000 Sikhs living in Pakistan.[27] Most are settled in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa followed by Sindh and Punjab.[28] Other sources, including the US Department of State, claim the Sikh population in Pakistan to be as high as 20,000.[29][30] In a news article published in December 2022, there was an estimated 30,000–35,000 Sikhs in Pakistan according to Gurpal Singh and Sikhs will be included as a separate category and enumerated on the 2023 Census of Pakistan.[31] The results of the 2023 census will be a milestone in the first official inclusion of Sikhs since the formation of Pakistan as a sovereign nation. The National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) has provided the numbers of eligible voters belonging to minority religions (registered in electoral rolls):

  • 2013: 5,934 Sikh Voters [32]
  • 2018: 8,852 Sikh Voters[32]
Pakistani Sikhs by Province - 2023 Census[1]
Province Total Population Urban Rural Male Female
Punjab 5,649 4,354 1,295 2,975 2,667
Sindh 5,182 3,540 1,642 2,782 2,382
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 4,050 2,430 1,620 2,084 1,964
Balochistan 1,057 468 589 633 420
Islamabad 60 37 23 36 24
  Pakistan 15,988 10,829 5,169 8,510 7,457
 
Geographical distribution - 2023


Colonial era

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According to the 1941 census, the Sikh population in Pakistan comprised roughly 1.67 million persons or 6.1 percent of the total population.[a] With the exception of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas, all administrative divisions in the region that compose contemporary Pakistan collected religious data, with a combined population of 27,266,001, for an overall response rate of 92.0 percent out of the total population of 29,643,600, as detailed in the table below.[a]

Sikhism in Pakistan by administrative division[a]
Administrative
division 		1941 Census
Sikh Population Sikh Percentage Total Responses Total Population
Punjab[4]: 42 [b] 1,530,112 8.82% 17,350,103 17,350,103
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa[34]: 22  57,939 1.91% 3,038,067[d] 5,415,666[d]
AJK[36]: 337–352 [e] 39,910 3.72% 1,073,154 1,073,154
Sindh[33]: 28 [c] 32,627 0.67% 4,840,795 4,840,795
Balochistan[35]: 13–18  12,044 1.4% 857,835 857,835
Gilgit–Baltistan[36]: 337–352 [f] 121 0.1% 116,047 116,047
Pakistan 1,672,753 6.13% 27,266,001 29,643,600

Punjab

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Sikh Population History
Punjab, Pakistan
YearPop.±% p.a.
1881 272,908—    
1901 483,999+2.91%
1911 813,441+5.33%
1921 863,091+0.59%
1931 1,180,789+3.18%
1941 1,530,112+2.63%
1951 35−65.65%
20235,649+7.32%
Source: [g][h][i][j][k][b][44]: 21 
Census of India, Census of Pakistan[1]
 
A Sodhi Sikh, Lahore, 1875.
 
Gurdwara Dera Sahib in Lahore (1914).
 
The Samadhi (mausoleum) of Ranjit Singh, Lahore, 1914.
 
Sikh girls school in Rawalpindi, circa 1920's (estimate)

According to the 1941 census, the Sikh population in West Punjab (the region that composes contemporary Punjab, Pakistan) was approximately 1,520,112, or 8.77 percent of the total population.[b] At the district level in the West Punjab region, the largest Sikh concentrations existed in Sheikhupura District (Sikhs formed 18.85 percent of the total population and numbered 160,706 persons), Lyallpur District (18.82 percent or 262,737 persons), Lahore District (18.32 percent or 310,646 persons), Montgomery District (13.17 percent or 175,064 persons), and Sialkot District (11.71 percent or 139,409 persons).[4]: 42 

Sikhs in the administrative divisions that compose the contemporary Punjab, Pakistan region (1881–1941)
District or Princely State 1881[37][38][39][45] 1901[40]: 34 [46]: 62  1911[41]: 27 [47]: 27  1921[42]: 29  1931[43]: 277  1941[4]: 42 
Pop. % Pop. % Pop. % Pop. % Pop. % Pop. %
Lahore District 125,591 13.59% 159,701 13.74% 169,008 16.31% 179,975 15.91% 244,304 17.72% 310,646 18.32%
Sialkot District 40,195 3.97% 50,982 4.7% 81,761 8.35% 74,939 7.99% 94,955 9.69% 139,409 11.71%
Gujranwala District 36,159 5.86% 51,607 6.82% 107,748 11.67% 50,802 8.15% 71,595 9.73% 99,139 10.87%
Rawalpindi District 17,780 2.17% 32,234 3.46% 31,839 5.81% 31,718 5.57% 41,265 6.51% 64,127 8.17%
Montgomery District 11,964 2.8% 19,092 4.12% 68,175 12.74% 95,520 13.38% 148,155 14.82% 175,064 13.17%
Jhelum District 11,188 1.9% 15,070 2.54% 24,436 4.78% 18,626 3.9% 22,030 4.07% 24,680 3.92%
Gujrat District 8,885 1.29% 24,893 3.32% 44,693 5.99% 49,456 6% 59,188 6.42% 70,233 6.36%
Shakargarh Tehsil[l] 5,090 2.32% 6,557 2.8% 10,553 5.01% 12,303 5.78% 15,730 6.36% 20,573 7.06%
Shahpur District 4,702 1.12% 12,756 2.43% 33,456 4.87% 30,361 4.22% 40,074 4.88% 48,046 4.81%
Jhang District 3,477 0.88% 3,526 0.93% 19,427 3.77% 9,376 1.64% 8,476 1.27% 12,238 1.49%
Muzaffargarh District 2,788 0.82% 3,225 0.8% 6,322 1.11% 4,869 0.86% 5,287 0.89% 5,882 0.83%
Multan District 2,085 0.38% 4,662 0.66% 19,881 2.44% 18,562 2.08% 39,453 3.36% 61,628 4.15%
Bahawalpur State 1,678 0.29% 7,985 1.11% 16,630 2.13% 19,071 2.44% 34,896 3.54% 46,945 3.5%
Dera Ghazi Khan District 1,326 0.36% 1,027 0.22% 1,042 0.21% 932 0.2% 760 0.15% 1,072 0.18%
Lyallpur District[m] — — 88,049 11.12% 146,670 17.1% 160,821 16.42% 211,391 18.36% 262,737 18.82%
Mianwali District — — 2,633 0.62% 4,881 1.43% 2,986 0.83% 4,231 1.03% 6,865 1.36%
Biloch Trans–Frontier Tract — — 0 0% 5 0.02% 0 0% 0 0% 2 0.005%
Attock District[n] — — — — 26,914 5.18% 19,809 3.87% 19,522 3.34% 20,120 2.98%
Sheikhupura District[o] — — — — — — 82,965 15.86% 119,477 17.15% 160,706 18.85%
Total Sikhs 272,908 3.44% 483,999 4.64% 813,441 7.33% 863,091 7.26% 1,180,789 8.41% 1,530,112 8.82%
Total Population 7,942,399 100% 10,427,765 100% 11,104,585 100% 11,888,985 100% 14,040,798 100% 17,350,103 100%

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

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Sikh Population History
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
YearPop.±% p.a.
1921 28,040—    
1931 42,510+4.25%
1941 57,939+3.14%
1951 215−42.86%
2023 4,050+4.16%
Source: [48][49][34][44]: 9 [1]
Census of India, Census of Pakistan
 
45th Sikh Regiment escorting Afghan prisoners through the Khyber Pass during the Second Anglo-Afghan War (1878)
 
Sikhs at the Peshawar Fort (1879–1880)
 
Akali Phula Singh Memorial in Nowshera (Late 19th or early 20th century)
 
52nd Sikh Regiment in Kohat, North-West Frontier Province (1905)
 
Sikh recruits at school in North-West Frontier Province (1933–1935)
 
Sikh sepoys, non-commissioned and Indian Officers in uniform and mufti in North-West Frontier Province (1933–1935)
 
Sikhs and Hindus of Bannu migrating to India during the partition of 1947.

During the colonial era (British India), prior to the partition in 1947, decadal censuses enumerated religion in North-West Frontier Province, and not in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas. Both administrative divisions later amalgamated to become Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

According to the 1941 census, the Sikh population in North-West Frontier Province (part of the region that composes contemporary Khyber Pakhtunkhwa) was approximately 57,939, or 1.9 percent of the total population.[34]: 22  At the district level in North-West Frontier Province, the largest Sikh concentrations existed in Peshawar District (Sikhs formed 2.82 percent of the total population and numbered 24,030 persons), Mardan District (2.34 percent or 11,838 persons), and Bannu District (2.07 percent or 6,112 persons).[34]: 22–23 

Sikhs in the districts of North–West Frontier Province (1921–1941)
District 1921[48]: 344–346  1931[49]: 373–375  1941[34]: 22–23 
Pop. % Pop. % Pop. %
Peshawar District 15,326 1.69% 24,271 2.49% 24,030 2.82%
Hazara District 4,850 0.78% 7,630 1.14% 9,220 1.16%
Bannu District 3,286 1.33% 5,482 2.03% 6,112 2.07%
Kohat District 2,674 1.25% 3,249 1.38% 4,349 1.5%
Dera Ismail Khan District 1,904 0.73% 1,878 0.69% 2,390 0.8%
Mardan District — — — — 11,838 2.34%
Total Sikhs 28,040 1.25% 42,510 1.75% 57,939 1.91%
Total Population 2,251,340 100% 2,425,076 100% 3,038,067 100%

At the tehsil level in North-West Frontier Province, as per the 1941 census, the largest Sikh concentrations existed in Peshawar Tehsil (Sikhs formed 3.97 percent of the total population and numbered 15,454 persons), Kohat Tehsil (3.15 percent or 3,613 persons), Nowshera Tehsil (3.04 percent or 6,636 persons), Mardan Tehsil (3.04 percent or 9,091 persons), and Bannu Tehsil (2.82 percent or 5,285 persons).[34]: 30 

Sikhs in the tehsils of North–West Frontier Province (1921–1941)
Tehsil 1921[48]: 510–516  1931[49]: 393–396  1941[34]: 30 
Pop. % Pop. % Pop. %
Peshawar Tehsil 8,223 3.12% 9,736 3.49% 15,454 3.97%
Abbottabad Tehsil 3,344 1.44% 4,599 1.81% 6,035 1.96%
Mardan Tehsil 2,874 1.67% 5,174 2.61% 9,091 3.04%
Bannu Tehsil 2,777 1.95% 4,979 3.08% 5,285 2.82%
Nowshera Tehsil 2,380 1.6% 4,678 2.91% 6,636 3.04%
Kohat Tehsil 2,195 2.84% 2,184 2.47% 3,613 3.15%
Swabi Tehsil 1,062 0.67% 3,030 1.91% 2,747 1.33%
Haripur Tehsil 968 0.6% 2,019 1.19% 2,011 1.07%
Dera Ismail Khan Tehsil 884 0.57% 894 0.52% 1,740 0.93%
Tank Tehsil 811 1.36% 574 1.12% 401 0.72%
Charsadda Tehsil 787 0.48% 1,653 0.93% 1,940 0.79%
Marwat Tehsil 509 0.49% 503 0.46% 817 0.75%
Mansehra Tehsil 468 0.23% 966 0.46% 965 0.4%
Hangu Tehsil 434 0.97% 1,038 2.31% 650 1.05%
Kulachi Tehsil 209 0.46% 410 0.79% 249 0.45%
Amb Tehsil 70 0.32% 45 0.14% 195 0.41%
Teri Tehsil 45 0.05% 27 0.03% 86 0.08%
Phulra Tehsil 0 0% 1 0.02% 14 0.16%
Total Sikhs 28,040 1.25% 42,510 1.75% 57,929 1.91%
Total Population 2,251,340 100% 2,425,076 100% 3,038,067 100%

According to the 1941 census, the Sikh population in urban portions of North-West Frontier Province was approximately 41,399, or 7.5 percent of the total urban population.[34]: 19  Cities/urban areas in North-West Frontier Province with the largest Sikh concentrations included Mardan (Sikhs formed 14.15 percent of the total population and numbered 6,014 persons), Bannu (12.71 percent or 4,894 persons), Risalpur (11.37 percent or 1,024 persons), Haripur (11.1 percent or 1,035 persons), and Abbottabad (9.77 percent or 2,680 persons).[34]: 19 

Sikhs in the cities of North-West Frontier Province (1921–1941)
City/Urban Area 1921[48]: 340–342  1931[49]: 257–259  1941[34]: 19 
Pop. % Pop. % Pop. %
Peshawar[p] 6,152 5.89% 8,630 7.08% 14,245 8.21%
Bannu[p] 2,421 10.88% 3,947 12.92% 4,894 12.71%
Kohat[p] 2,139 7.68% 2,152 6.26% 3,562 7.92%
Mardan[p] 1,679 15.36% 2,927 11.14% 6,014 14.15%
Nowshera[q] 1,319 4.75% 3,042 10.5% 4,253 9.66%
Jamrud 1,254 20.46% — — — —
Abbottabad[p] 879 6.45% 1,039 6.43% 2,680 9.77%
Dera Ismail Khan[q] 724 1.84% 708 1.76% 1,412 2.75%
Risalpur 601 7.07% 314 3.92% 1,024 11.37%
Lakki[r] 470 6.29% 268 3.48% 548 5.4%
Haripur 346 5.88% 696 9.09% 1,035 11.1%
Tank[r] 344 3.17% 240 3.74% 181 1.99%
Nawan Shehr[r] 246 4.83% 363 7.08% 309 4.82%
Kulachi[r] 84 1.06% 128 1.52% 138 1.56%
Baffa[r] 39 0.51% 86 1.19% 81 1.01%
Charsadda 30 0.29% 287 2.49% 294 1.75%
Cherat 8 3.07% 74 8.78% 25 7.42%
Tangi 1 0.01% 7 0.08% 2 0.02%
Parang 1 0.01% 0 0% 0 0%
Mansehra — — 469 8.11% 375 3.67%
Utmanzai — — — — 171 1.69%
Kot Najibullah — — — — 156 2.94%
Total Urban Sikh Population 18,737 5.58% 25,377 6.57% 41,399 7.5%
Total Urban Population 335,849 100% 386,177 100% 552,193 100%

Balochistan

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According to the 1941 census, the Sikh population in Baluchistan Agency (the region that composes contemporary Balochistan, Pakistan) was approximately 12,044, or 1.4 percent of the total population.[35]: 13–18  At the district/princely state level in Baluchistan Agency, the largest Sikh concentrations existed in Quetta–Pishin District (Sikhs formed 5.62 percent of the total population and numbered 8,787 persons), Bolan District (3.06 percent or 184 persons), Zhob District (1.75 percent or 1,076 persons), Loralai District (1.34 percent or 1,124 persons), and Chaghai District (0.6 percent or 181 persons).[35]: 13–18 

Sikhs in the districts and princely states of Baluchistan Agency (1941)[35]: 13–18 
District/
Princely State 		Sikhism  
Population Percentage
Quetta–Pishin District 8,787 5.62%
Loralai District 1,124 1.34%
Zhob District 1,076 1.75%
Sibi District 566 0.34%
Bolan District 184 3.06%
Chaghai District 181 0.6%
Kalat State 79 0.03%
Las Bela State 47 0.07%
Kharan State 0 0%
Total Sikhs 12,044 1.4%
Total Population 857,835 100%

According to the 1941 census, the Sikh population in urban portions of Baluchistan Agency was approximately 11,041, or 9.7 percent of the total urban population.[35]: 13–14  Cities/urban areas in Baluchistan Agency with the largest Sikh concentrations included Loralai (Sikhs formed 21.9 percent of the total population and numbered 1,116 persons), Quetta (11.42 percent or 7,364 persons), Fort Sandeman (10.73 percent or 1,004 persons), Chaman (10.48 percent or 697 persons), and Pishin (9.68 percent or 183 persons).[35]: 13–14 

Sikhs in the cities of Baluchistan Agency (1941)[35]: 13–14 
City/Urban Area Sikhism  
Population Percentage
Quetta[s] 7,364 11.42%
Loralai[s] 1,116 21.9%
Fort Sandeman[s] 1,004 10.73%
Chaman[s] 697 10.48%
Sibi 362 4.09%
Pishin 183 9.68%
Machh 121 5.45%
Usta 77 4%
Bela 47 1.2%
Kalat 33 1.34%
Mastung 28 0.89%
Panjgur 9 1.9%
Pasni 0 0%
Total Urban
Sikh Population 		11,041 9.68%
Total Urban
Population 		114,060 100%

Religious Persecution

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In Pakistan multiple incidents of discrimination against religious minorities have occurred. These attacks are usually blamed on religious extremists but certain laws in the Pakistan Criminal Code and government inaction are also thought to cause these attacks to surge.[50][51] Sunni militant groups operate with impunity across Pakistan, as law enforcement officials either turn a blind eye or appear helpless to prevent widespread attacks against religious minorities.[51] Sikhs have been victims of massacres, targeted assassinations and forced conversions, mostly in Peshawar.[52][53][54] Non-Muslim Pakistanis, including Sikhs, continue to grapple with significant challenges of persecution and religious discrimination. In response to alleged death threats, numerous Sikh families have sought refuge in other nations deemed "safer" to secure their well-being.[55]

Attack on Sikh Community

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The Sikh community protested in Pakistan for their absence in census of 2017.

In 2009, the Taliban in Pakistan demanded that Sikhs in the region pay them the jizya (poll tax levied by Muslims on non-Muslim minorities).[56] In 2010, the Taliban attacked many minorities including Sikhs resulting in two beheadings.[57]

Pakistani Sikh diaspora

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Many Pakistani Sikhs have emigrated to countries like the United Kingdom (UK), Canada and Thailand. According to the UK's 2001 census, there were 346 Pakistani Sikhs in the UK. There is also a growing Pakistani Sikh expatriate community in the United Arab Emirates.[58]

Notable Pakistani Sikhs

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Following are some of notable Pakistani Sikhs:

Sikh Gurdwaras in Pakistan

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Main article: List of Gurdwaras in Pakistan
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See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ a b c d e 1941 figure taken from census data by combining the total population of all administrative divisions that compose the region of contemporary Pakistan, including Punjab,[4]: 42 [b] Sindh,[33]: 28 [c] Khyber Pakhtunkhwa,[34]: 22 [d] Balochistan,[35]: 13–18  Azad Jammu and Kashmir,[36]: 337–352 [e] and Gilgit–Baltistan.[36]: 337–352 [f]
  2. ^ a b c d e 1941 figure taken from census data by combining the total population of all districts (Lahore, Sialkot, Gujranwala, Sheikhupura, Gujrat, Shahpur, Jhelum, Rawalpindi, Attock, Mianwali, Montgomery, Lyallpur, Jhang, Multan, Muzaffargargh, Dera Ghazi Khan), one tehsil (Shakargarh – then part of Gurdaspur District), one princely state (Bahawalpur), and one tract (Biloch Trans–Frontier) in Punjab Province, British India that ultimately fell on the western side of the Radcliffe Line. See 1941 census data here: [4]: 42 
    Immediately following the partition of India in 1947, these districts and tract would ultimately make up the subdivision of West Punjab, which also later included Bahawalpur. The state that makes up this region in the contemporary era is Punjab, Pakistan.
  3. ^ a b 1941 figure taken from census data by combining the total population of all districts (Dadu, Hyderabad, Karachi, Larkana, Nawabshah, Sukkur, Tharparkar, Upper Sind Frontier), and one princely state (Khairpur), in Sindh Province, British India. See 1941 census data here: [33]
  4. ^ a b c Religious data only collected in North West Frontier Province, and not in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas. Total responses to religion includes North West Frontier Province, and total population includes both North West Frontier Province and the Federally Administered Tribal Areas, both administrative divisions which later amalgamated to become Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
  5. ^ a b 1941 figure taken from census data by combining the total population of two districts (Mirpur and Muzaffarabad) and one Jagir (Poonch) in the Princely State of Jammu and Kashmir that ultimately would be administered by Pakistan, in the contemporary self-administrative territory of Azad Jammu and Kashmir. See 1941 census data here:[36]: 337–352 
  6. ^ a b 1941 figure taken from census data by combining the total population of one district (Astore) and one agency (Gilgit) in the Princely State of Jammu and Kashmir that ultimately would be administered by Pakistan, in the contemporary administrative territory of Gilgit–Baltistan. See 1941 census data here:[36]: 337–352 
  7. ^ 1881 figure taken from census data by combining the total population of all districts (Lahore, Sialkot, Gujranwala, Gujrat, Shahpur, Jhelum, Rawalpindi, Montgomery, Jhang, Multan, Muzaffargargh, Dera Ghazi Khan), one tehsil (Shakargarh – then part of Gurdaspur District), and one princely state (Bahawalpur) in Punjab Province, British India that ultimately fell on the western side of the Radcliffe Line. See 1881 census data here: [37][38][39]
    Immediately following the partition of India in 1947, these districts and tract would ultimately make up the subdivision of West Punjab, which also later included Bahawalpur. The state that makes up this region in the contemporary era is Punjab, Pakistan.
  8. ^ 1901 figure taken from census data by combining the total population of all districts (Lahore, Sialkot, Gujranwala, Gujrat, Shahpur, Jhelum, Rawalpindi, Mianwali, Montgomery, Lyallpur (inscribed as the Chenab Colony on the 1901 census), Jhang, Multan, Muzaffargargh, Dera Ghazi Khan), one tehsil (Shakargarh – then part of Gurdaspur District), one princely state (Bahawalpur), and one tract (Biloch Trans–Frontier) in Punjab Province, British India that ultimately fell on the western side of the Radcliffe Line. See 1901 census data here: [40]: 34 
    Immediately following the partition of India in 1947, these districts and tract would ultimately make up the subdivision of West Punjab, which also later included Bahawalpur. The state that makes up this region in the contemporary era is Punjab, Pakistan.
  9. ^ 1911 figure taken from census data by combining the total population of all districts (Lahore, Sialkot, Gujranwala, Sheikhupura, Gujrat, Shahpur, Jhelum, Rawalpindi, Attock, Mianwali, Montgomery, Lyallpur, Jhang, Multan, Muzaffargargh, Dera Ghazi Khan), one tehsil (Shakargarh – then part of Gurdaspur District), one princely state (Bahawalpur), and one tract (Biloch Trans–Frontier) in Punjab Province, British India that ultimately fell on the western side of the Radcliffe Line. See 1911 census data here: [41]: 27 [41]: 27 
    Immediately following the partition of India in 1947, these districts and tract would ultimately make up the subdivision of West Punjab, which also later included Bahawalpur. The state that makes up this region in the contemporary era is Punjab, Pakistan.
  10. ^ 1921 figure taken from census data by combining the total population of all districts (Lahore, Sialkot, Gujranwala, Sheikhupura, Gujrat, Shahpur, Jhelum, Rawalpindi, Attock, Mianwali, Montgomery, Lyallpur, Jhang, Multan, Muzaffargargh, Dera Ghazi Khan), one tehsil (Shakargarh – then part of Gurdaspur District), one princely state (Bahawalpur), and one tract (Biloch Trans–Frontier) in Punjab Province, British India that ultimately fell on the western side of the Radcliffe Line. See 1921 census data here: [42]: 29 
    Immediately following the partition of India in 1947, these districts and tract would ultimately make up the subdivision of West Punjab, which also later included Bahawalpur. The state that makes up this region in the contemporary era is Punjab, Pakistan.
  11. ^ 1931 figure taken from census data by combining the total population of all districts (Lahore, Sialkot, Gujranwala, Sheikhupura, Gujrat, Shahpur, Jhelum, Rawalpindi, Attock, Mianwali, Montgomery, Lyallpur, Jhang, Multan, Muzaffargargh, Dera Ghazi Khan), one tehsil (Shakargarh – then part of Gurdaspur District), one princely state (Bahawalpur), and one tract (Biloch Trans–Frontier) in Punjab Province, British India that ultimately fell on the western side of the Radcliffe Line. See 1931 census data here: [43]: 277 
    Immediately following the partition of India in 1947, these districts and tract would ultimately make up the subdivision of West Punjab, which also later included Bahawalpur. The state that makes up this region in the contemporary era is Punjab, Pakistan.
  12. ^ Part of Gurdaspur District which was awarded to Pakistan as part of the Radcliffe Line.
  13. ^ District formerly inscribed as the Chenab Colony on the 1901 census, later renamed to Lyallpur District, created between Jhang District, Gujranwala District, Lahore District, Montgomery District, and Multan District to account for the large population increase in the region, primarily due to the Chenab Canal Colony.
  14. ^ District created in 1904 by taking Talagang Tehsil from Jhelum District and Pindi Gheb, Fateh Jang and Attock Tehsils from Rawalpindi District.
  15. ^ District created between Gujranwala District, Sialkot District, Amritsar District, Lahore District, Montgomery District, and Lyallpur District in 1920 to account for the large population increase in the region, primarily due to the Chenab Canal Colony.
  16. ^ a b c d e Includes total Municipality and Cantonment population.
  17. ^ a b Includes total Cantonment and Notified area population.
  18. ^ a b c d e Includes total Notified area population.
  19. ^ a b c d Includes town and cantonment

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e "7th Population and Housing Census - Detailed Results Table-9 Population by sex, religion and rural/urban". Pakistan Bureau of Statistics. Retrieved 14 September 2024.
  2. ^ Gupta, Hari Ram (1991). History of the Sikhs. Munshiram Manoharlal. p. 201. ISBN 978-8121505154.
  3. ^ Singh, Khushwant (2004). History of the Sikhs. Oxford University Press. p. viii. ISBN 978-0195673081.
  4. ^ a b c d e India Census Commissioner (1941). "Census of India, 1941. Vol. 6, Punjab". JSTOR saoa.crl.28215541. Retrieved 4 February 2023.
  5. ^ "The Mutual Genocide of Indian Partition". The New Yorker. 22 June 2015.
  6. ^ "Sikh farmers who migrated twice suffered the most during Partition". 15 August 2022.
  7. ^ "Sikh pilgrims arrive in Pakistan to attend Guru Nanak's birth anniversary celebrations". thenews.com.pk. Retrieved 13 November 2019.
  8. ^ Kudaisya, Gyanesh; Yong, Tan Tai (2004). The Aftermath of Partition in South Asia. Routledge. p. 100. ISBN 978-1-134-44048-1. No sooner was it made public than the Sikhs launched a virulent campaign against the Lahore Resolution. Pakistan was portrayed as a possible return to an unhappy past when Sikhs were persecuted and Muslims the persecutor. Public speeches by various Sikh political leaders on the subject of Pakistan invariably raised images of atrocities committed by Muslims on Sikhs and of the martyrdom of their gurus and heroes. Reactions to the Lahore Resolution were uniformly negative and Sikh leaders of all political persuasions made it clear that Pakistan would be 'wholeheartedly resisted'. The Shiromani Akali Dal, the party with a substantial following amongst the rural Sikhs, organized several well-attended conferences in Lahore to condemn the Muslim League. Master Tara Singh, leader of the Akali Dal, declared that his party would fight Pakistan 'tooth and nail'. Not be outdone, other Sikh political organizations, rival to the Akali Dal, namely the Central Khalsa Young Men Union and the moderate and loyalist Chief Khalsa Dewan, declared in equally strong language their unequivocal opposition to the Pakistan scheme.
  9. ^ "The villagers are proud of the link between Gah and the prime minister of India". Thenews.com.pk. Archived from the original on 4 October 2012. Retrieved 10 March 2015.
  10. ^ "Singh's ancestral village, Gah, is located 25 kilometres west of Chakwal city and attracted journalists like moths to a flame following the former PM's rise to power". Dawn.com.
  11. ^ ""Maryada may be in danger, but Sikhs are special in Pakistan"". The Tribune India. 4 October 2006.
  12. ^ "[Chapter 1: Fundamental Rights] of [Part II: Fundamental Rights and Principles of Policy]". Pakistani.org. Retrieved 13 August 2010.
  13. ^ "Sikhs of Narayanpura welcoming people from all walks of life to attend their celebrations such as Joti-Jot and the birth anniversary of Baba Guru Nanak". Dawn.com.
  14. ^ "Ranchore Line's Narayanpura, an area where the Sikhs and the Hindus live together". Tribune.com.pk.
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  16. ^ "India Uncut: Jaziya". Indiauncut.blogspot.com. Retrieved 16 December 2018.
  17. ^ "The Heart-rending Story of Afghani Sikhs" Archived 10 March 2006 at the Wayback Machine 4 October 2006
  18. ^ "Many of the Sikhs displaced from the Tirah Valley have adopted Pashtun traditions and culture". Thediplomat.com.
  19. ^ "25,000 Sikhs in the province – mostly in Buner, Swat, DI Khan, Bara, Khyber, Kurram and Orakzai agencies". Tribune.com/pk.
  20. ^ Tahir, Zulqernain (20 December 2005). "First Sikh officer in Pakistan Army". Dawn.com. Retrieved 16 December 2018.
  21. ^ "Prominent Sikhs within Pakistan, those who have crossed difficult barriers to succeed in their life and careers". Dawn.com.
  22. ^ "Pakistan passes Anand Karaj". September 2011.
  23. ^ "Pakistan Minister gives assurances for enacting Sikh Marriage Act" 24 November 2007
  24. ^ Malik, Arif (14 March 2018). "Punjab Assembly unanimously passes landmark bill to regulate Sikh marriages". Dawn. Retrieved 29 January 2021.
  25. ^ "Sindh Assembly approves Hindu Marriage Bill". Dawn. 15 February 2016. Retrieved 29 January 2021.
  26. ^ "Over 35,000 Buddhists, Baha'is call Pakistan home". The Express Tribune. 2 September 2012. Retrieved 16 December 2018.
  27. ^ "Pak NGO to resolve issues of Sikh community". The Times of India. Retrieved 16 December 2018.
  28. ^ "Number of non-Muslim voters in Pakistan shows rise of over 30pc". 28 May 2018.
  29. ^ "Pakistan's dwindling Sikh community wants improved security". Dawn.com. 17 April 2015. Retrieved 16 December 2018.
  30. ^ "Pakistan". State.gov. 14 September 2007. Retrieved 13 August 2010.
  31. ^ Rana, Yudhvir (15 December 2022). "Pakistan census to have column for Sikhs | Amritsar News - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 21 December 2022. He said roughly there were around 30,000-35,000 Sikhs in Pakistan.
  32. ^ a b https://www.dawn.com/news/1410442/number-of-non-muslim-voters-in-pakistan-shows-rise-of-over-30pc Dawn.com. 28 May 2018.
  33. ^ a b c India Census Commissioner (1941). "Census of India, 1941. Vol. 12, Sind". JSTOR saoa.crl.28215545. Retrieved 4 February 2023.
  34. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k India Census Commissioner (1941). "Census of India, 1941. Vol. 10, North-West Frontier Province". JSTOR saoa.crl.28215543. Retrieved 4 February 2023.
  35. ^ a b c d e f g h India Census Commissioner (1942). "Census of India, 1941. Vol. 14, Baluchistan". JSTOR saoa.crl.28215993. Retrieved 4 February 2023.
  36. ^ a b c d e f India Census Commissioner (1941). "Census of India, 1941. Vol. 22, Jammu & Kashmir". JSTOR saoa.crl.28215644. Retrieved 4 February 2023.
  37. ^ a b "Census of India, 1881 Report on the Census of the Panjáb Taken on the 17th of February 1881, vol. I." 1881. JSTOR saoa.crl.25057656. Retrieved 31 March 2024.
  38. ^ a b "Census of India, 1881 Report on the Census of the Panjáb Taken on the 17th of February 1881, vol. II". 1881. p. 520. JSTOR saoa.crl.25057657. Retrieved 31 March 2024.
  39. ^ a b "Census of India, 1881 Report on the Census of the Panjáb Taken on the 17th of February 1881, vol. III". 1881. p. 250. JSTOR saoa.crl.25057658. Retrieved 31 March 2024.
  40. ^ a b "Census of India 1901. [Vol. 17A]. Imperial tables, I-VIII, X-XV, XVII and XVIII for the Punjab, with the native states under the political control of the Punjab Government, and for the North-west Frontier Province". 1901. JSTOR saoa.crl.25363739. Retrieved 10 March 2024.
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  42. ^ a b "Census of India 1921. Vol. 15, Punjab and Delhi. Pt. 2, Tables". 1921. JSTOR saoa.crl.25430165. Retrieved 17 February 2024.
  43. ^ a b "Census of India 1931. Vol. 17, Punjab. Pt. 2, Tables". 1931. JSTOR saoa.crl.25793242. Retrieved 4 February 2024.
  44. ^ a b "Census of Pakistan, 1951 Population According to Religion Table 6". Retrieved 11 February 2024.
  45. ^ "Gazetteers Of Gurdaspur District, 1883-84". 1884. Retrieved 7 April 2024.
  46. ^ "Punjab District Gazetteers Gurdaspur District Vol.21 Statistical Tables". 1913. Retrieved 10 March 2024.
  47. ^ Kaul, Harikishan (1911). "Census Of India 1911 Punjab Vol XIV Part II". Retrieved 3 March 2024.
  48. ^ a b c d {{cite web|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/saoa.crl.25430163 |jstor=saoa.crl.25430163 |access-date=2 February 2023 |title=Census of India 1921. Vol. 14, North-west Frontier Province : part I, Report; part II, Tables. |year=1921}}
  49. ^ a b c d Mallam, G. L.; Dundas, A. D. F. (1933). "Census of India, 1931, vol. XV. North-west frontier province. Part I-Report. Part II-Tables". Peshawar, Printed by the manager, Government stationery and printing, 1933. JSTOR saoa.crl.25793233. Retrieved 7 February 2023.
  50. ^ "Timeline: Persecution of religious minorities". 4 November 2012. Retrieved 6 March 2015.
  51. ^ a b World Report 2014 (PDF). Human Rights Watch. 2011. pp. 366–372.
  52. ^ "Popular Pakistani Sikh activist shot dead in Peshawar". Hindustan Times. 30 May 2018.
  53. ^ "Three Sikh beheaded by Taliban in Pakistan". Economic Times. 22 February 2010.
  54. ^ "India protests against Pakistan's move to convert Sikh gurdwara into mosque in Lahore". Deccan Chronicle. 28 July 2020.
  55. ^ "Sikhs in Pakistan fear for lives as persecution rages on". international.la-croix.com. 14 December 2018. Retrieved 27 July 2023.
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  59. ^ "Gurdeep Singh takes oath as first turban-clad Sikh Senator of Pakistan". 13 March 2021.
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