" In my 30 years
of service, carrying
a kirpan has always
been strictly
prohibited,"
ASF official Mian Safdar. ILLUSTRATION: JAMAL KHURSHID
PESHAWAR: Sikhs have been prohibited from entering the Peshawar airport while carrying their religious symbol kirpan (a small dagger).
The kirpan is one of the five kakar that are considered a religious necessity for all practising Khalisa Sikhs. Carrying a kirpan, kara (iron bracelet), kanga (Comb), kachera (underwear) and kesh (hair) is considered an essential part of their faith.
Talking to The Express Tribune, Dr Sahib Singh, a
representative of the Sikh community and a former member of the district
assembly, said that the people of his community had not been allowed to
enter the Bacha Khan International Airport with a kirpan.
“If you abandon any one of the five kakar, it means that you
are not a member of the Khalisa religion formed by Guru Goband Singh,”
explained Dr Singh. He said that people in Punjab understand this rule
and do not face any problems at the Lahore airport, where thousands of
yatris from across the world are received every year.
Dr Singh further said that as per the 1971 constitution, the Sikh community had been allowed to carry a kirpan of up to three feet. However, Sikhs in Peshawar and other parts of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa carry only small kirpans,
of three to six inches in length. “The constitution of this country
gives us the right to carry our religious symbol and there is no
evidence that we have harmed anyone with it. It is just a symbol of
bravery as our Guru also carried a kirpan with him.”
Another member of the community, Ajeet Singh, said that Sikhs cannot
just abandon their religion over security measures. He said that they
too are citizens of Pakistan and it is the duty of the provincial
government to solve the problem.
A representative of the Hindu community, Haroon Sarb Dyal, told The Express Tribune
that a number of meetings with government officials had been held but
no progress has been made on the issue. Dyal said that the constitution
of Pakistan gives minorities the right to live in accordance with their
religious teachings and that the government should resolve the problem.
Civil Aviation Authority Public Relations Officer Pervez George said
that even personnel of law enforcement agencies are not allowed to bring
arms or anything that poses threat inside the airport.
Mian Safdar, assistant director of the Airport Security Force at the Bacha Khan International Airport said that carrying a kirpan in hand luggage is banned all over the country.“In my 30 years of service, carrying a kirpan has always been strictly prohibited.” He added, however, that kirpans are allowed in
luggage that is checked in.
luggage that is checked in.
Published in The Express Tribune, August 24th, 2012. LINK
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