Pak Punjab gets first Sikh minister, Ramesh Singh Arora takes oath

Maryam’s uncle Shehbaz Sharif was recently sworn-in as the Prime Minister of Pakistan.

Speaking to The Indian Express over the phone, Arora, who was recently elected as the chief of the Pakistan Sikh Gurudwara Parbandhak Committee (PSGPC), said: “For the first time since Partition a Sikh has been inducted into the Cabinet of the Punjab province. I won’t just work for the safety and well-being of Sikhs but all minorities, including Hindus and Christians living in Pakistan.”

In the recently held elections, Arora was re-elected as an MPA from Narowal, his native place where Gurdwara Sri Kartarpur Sahib, the final resting place of Guru Nanak is located. Last year, he was also appointed as the “Ambassador at large” for the Kartarpur Corridor.

A delegation from India side Punjab led by Gurbhajan Singh also attended Arora’s oath-taking ceremony. (Photo Credit: Special Arrangement)

Arora said during the partition in 1947, his family had chosen to stay back in Pakistan instead of moving to India like the majority of Sikh and Hindu families. “I was born in Nankana Sahib but later we moved to Narowal. My grandfather had chosen to stay back in Pakistan during the partition at the insistence of his dear friend. Just for the sake of friendship, he had chosen to stay back,” Arora said.

Arora is likely to get the minority affairs portfolio. “I have several plans for the welfare of minorities in Pakistan, especially Punjab. Though the Sikh Marriage Act was passed here, it is yet to be implemented. We will get it implemented. We will also bring a new Interfaith Harmony Policy so that all minorities, including Sikhs, Hindus, Christians and others, feel safe and secure. We will also ensure that the 2 per cent quota for minority students in educational institutions of Pakistan is implemented in letter and spirit,” he said.

A postgraduate in entrepreneurship and SME Management from Government College University, Lahore, Arora worked for the World Bank’s Poverty Reduction Programme in Pakistan before joining politics. In 2008, he founded Mojaz Foundation, an organisation working for the underprivileged and poor in Pakistan.

During the oath-taking ceremony. (Photo Credit: Special Arrangement)

Arora said it was unfortunate that even after over four years since the Kartarpur Corridor was opened (November 2019) to facilitate pilgrims from India to pay obeisance at Gurdwara Sri Kartarpur Sahib, “the response has been lukewarm”.

“We will take all possible steps to encourage more people from India to visit Kartarpur via the corridor,” he said. He added that not just tourism for Sikh pilgrimage places but that for Hindu and Christian sites will also be promoted.

Arora’s elder brother Bhai Gobind Singh serves as the head granthi at the Kartarpur Gurdwara.

Asked about the dwindling Sikh and Hindu population in Pakistan, Arora said: “The new interfaith policy will sort out these issues.”

Arora is also credited for the implementation of the Sikh Marriage Registration Act 2017 in Pakistan. He had introduced it as a private member bill which was unanimously passed by the Assembly in March 2018.

“I had joined politics under the guidance of Ahsan Iqbal Chaudhary, a senior PML (N) leader. He said that it was important to have a person from the Sikh minority community in the Punjab Assembly of Pakistan,” Arora said.

Arora said he had last visited India in December 2014 to attend the NRI Sammelan at the invitation of former chief minister Parkash Singh Badal. “We have close ties with Sukhbir Badal and former Punjab speaker Charanjit Singh Atwal. They had invited me to India and gave a lot of respect to me and my family,” Arora said.

Asked about his opponents targeting him as a “Hindu converted Sikh”, Arora says, “I can just say that such people cannot be the true followers of Guru Nanak who recognised the entire humanity as one.”

Around 17,000-20,000 Sikhs and over 20 lakh Hindus are left in Pakistan, according to reports. Most Sikhs live in or around Nankana Sahib, Lahore and Peshawar.

Incidentally, a delegation of writers and poets from Punjab, India, led by poet Gurbhajan Singh Gill is currently in Lahore to attend the World Punjabi Conference. They attended Arora’s oath-taking ceremony and gifted a “phulkari” dupatta made in Ludhiana to Marriyum Aurangzeb, Secretary (Information) of the PML (N).