New Delhi: A delegation of Sikhs and Hindus from Afghanistan met Prime Minister Narendra Modi at his residence here on Saturday and thanked him for bringing in the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) as well as standing up for him in the time of crisis.
Welcoming the delegation, Prime Minister Modi said that they are not guests, but India is their home.
The meeting is taking place a day after Prime Minister Modi hosted several prominent Sikhs at his residence and a day before the Punjab Assembly elections.
A statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office said that Prime Minister Modi spoke about the enormous difficulties being faced by Hindus and Sikhs in Afghanistan and the help provided by the government to bring them to a safe India.
In this light, he also talked about the importance of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and its benefits for the community, the statement said.
Prime Minister Modi assured them of continuing support in future as well as resolving all issues and difficulties being faced by them.
The Prime Minister also talked about the importance of the tradition of honoring the Guru Granth Sahib, in the light of which special arrangements were made to bring back the ‘Swaroop’ of the Guru Granth Sahib from Afghanistan. According to the statement, Modi also spoke about the immense love he has received from Afghans over the years and recalled his visit to Kabul.
BJP leader Manjinder Singh Sirsa, who was present on the occasion, thanked the Prime Minister for sending help from India to bring back the community members safely and said that when no one stood by him, the Prime Minister ensured his continued support and timely help. Of. Other members of the delegation also thanked the prime minister for standing up for him during the crisis, the statement said, adding that he had tears in his eyes when he asked him to make special arrangements to bring back the ‘Swaroop’ of the Guru Granth. Heard you talking According to the statement, Sahib from Afghanistan came to India with due reverence.
The members of the delegation also thanked him for bringing the CAA, which would be of great help to the members of his community, the statement said.
Praising Modi, members of the delegation said that he is not only the Prime Minister of India, but the “Prime Minister of the world”, as he understands the difficulties faced by Hindus and Sikhs across the world, especially, and make every effort to provide prompt. Please help in all such cases. Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri and Union Minister of State Meenakshi Lekhi were also present on the occasion.
Members of the delegation presented the Prime Minister with the traditional Afghan dress and cap, which he was wearing, and remarked that former Afghan President Hamid Karzai would be very happy to see him in that outfit.
A large number of Afghan Hindus and Sikhs are living in India, and the Indian government recently evacuated many of them after the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan. The Modi government has often emphasized its commitment to Afghanistan’s minorities, who have faced religious persecution, especially from the Taliban. The CAA, which facilitates the grant of Indian citizenship to persecuted non-Muslim minorities from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan, was passed by Parliament on December 11, 2019, and received the President’s assent the next day.