Lahore, July 1: A decades-old historic gurdwara was demolished by a local businessman in Pakistan’s Punjab province, sparking protests from the minority Sikh community, officials said.
According to an official of the Punjab government, the historic Gurdwara Singh Sabha in Farooqabad, some 70 kms from Lahore, was recently demolished by a local businessman. “The businessman had demolished the gurdwara without obtaining the required No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the department concerned. The department has not taken notice of it till the Sikhs of the area protested,” the official said.
He said Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz took notice of the matter following a protest by the Sikh community in the area.
On Wednesday, Punjab Minorities Minister Ramesh Singh Arora visited the Gurdwara Singh Sabha in Farooqabad and announced its immediate restoration.
Arora said that restoration work on Gurdwara Singh Sabha would commence immediately and reiterated that the Punjab government remained committed to preserving the province’s historic religious heritage and protecting places of worship belonging to minority communities. (PTI)
