Murder near Lahore gurdwara angers Indians

Pakistan: The murder of Dalip Kumar (25) in front of Gurdwara Dehra Sahib in Lahore, Pakistan, on Tuesday has created a scare among minority communities of Hindus and Sikhs living in that country. The Lahore police is making all-out efforts to solve the murder at the earliest, apparently to ward off possible criticism by India.

Sources said Nankana Sahib-based Dalip, an MBA, was looking for a job. He had been staying in the gurdwara for a couple of days. Two motorcycle-borne assailants came to the gurdwara and called him out. They fired at him indiscriminately following a brief verbal duel.

The incident sparked protests and a group of agitated Hindus and Sikhs converged in front of Gurdwara Nankana Sahib. They raised slogans against the Pakistan government before the cremation of Dalip. A number of Hindu and Sikh leaders, including member of Pakistan’s National Assembly Ramesh Kumar, former president of the Pakistan Sikh Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee Bishan Singh, attended the cremation.

“We have talked to police officers. The police has assured us that the crime would be solved by this evening,” said Ramesh while talking to The Tribune on the phone. Bishan Singh has demanded a thorough probe into the murder.

The sources said the assailants had been identified. The police was working on the theory of personal enmity in the case and that the two assailants might have been acquaintances of the victim. Information from another source pointed out that the two assailants tried to snatch the mobile of the victim. When he resisted the move, they shot him from point-blank range, killing him on the spot.