Chandigarh: Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal on Monday asked Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to take up with Pakistan the issue of forcible hair cut of a Sikh, an advocate based in that country, for reportedly refusing to embarce Islam.
In a letter to the Prime Minister, Badal highlighted the plight of an embattled Sikh family in Pakistan as reported in the media on December 15 this year.
The media reports said Anup Singh, a Sikh lawyer, was thrashed and his hair was forcibly cut for allegedly refusing to embrace Islam.
He was later booked by police under section 452 (house trespass, restraining or putting any person in fear of hurt) of the Pakistan Penal Code, Badal said in the letter quoting the reports.
The Chief Minister said Anup Singh's brother was now facing the threat of arrest and the beleaguered family had left their native village and taken shelter in Gururdwara Sri Panja Sahib in Hassnabdal.
Badal requested the Prime Minister to take up the matter with Pakistan for providing relief and security to the family and ensuring their safe return to their village, an official release said.
PTI
First Published: Monday, December 21, 2009, 21:58