Under the reigns of Taliban, the Hindus were forced to wear yellow badges to identify themselves. Afghanistan's current population is approx - imately 99.7 percent Muslim (84.7-89.7 percent Sunni and 10-15 percent Shi'a, including Ismailis), with non-Muslims (Hindus, Sikhs, Baha'is, Christians, Buddhists, Zoroastrians, and others) comprising the remaining 0.3 percent. A huge drop from a population of 2.2 lakhs in the 1980s. Well, that's definitely not the truth, Sikhism has been in the region since the 15th century. Despite the longstanding tensions between the Sikh and Muslim communities in South Asia, the Pashtuns were tolerant towards the religious minority of Sikhs. Many Sikhs leave home everyday to go to work and say goodbye as if it is for the last time, unsure if they will make it back home safely in a country where they face daily harassment and violence. The Sikh refugees from Afghanistan can be resettled in Kashmir Valley along with the existing Sikh population. BEGINNING OF SIKHISM IN AFGAHNSITAN. The decline of Afghanistan's Hindu and Sikh communities. Page 7 of 44 Hindu families. Afghanistan's 2004 constitution recognizes Islam as the official Nearly 99% Of Hindus, Sikhs Left Afghanistan in Last Three decades. Speaking to a Hindu priest who was born and raised predominantly in Afghanistan, I ask him about his experience growing up in an era which witnessed the social fragmentation of Afghanistan. "After the 2020 Kabul gurdwara attack and kidnapping of Sachdeva, the number dropped to around 200, a near extinction of the once robust community." (Getty Images) Most migrated to Pakistan or India, while others resettled in North America and Europe. It has also been home to people of other faiths. Till the beginning of the 1990s, there used to be at least 63 functional Gurudwaras in Afghanistan. Hindu-Sikh population in Afghanistan in 1990 was approximate 30,000. The SADD, therefore, requests you that the tiny Sikh population in Afghanistan be offered a rescue flight to India. But now the last of the country's Sik. As per Al Arabiya Post, irregularities in the audit of . Afghanistan's new constitution promises greater religious freedom. Hindus and Sikhs were flourishing as traders in Afghan society. Currently there are no more than 300 Sikh families in the entire country. The Sikh shrine, located in northwestern Kabul, is where . In fact, many Sikh families, fleeing the violence of partition in 1947 in northern Punjab, sought sanctuary in Afghanistan rather than escaping to India. The explanation going to be pretty sordid. 2,200 Sikhs and Hindus remaining in Afghanistan. Actual figures are hard to come by, but estimates put the population of Afghan Sikhs at 1,300 or 250 families. The last time the population was surveyed according to caste-in the 1931 Census of India-the Jats belonged to three main religions: Hinduism 47%, Islam 33%, and Sikhism 20% (Burdak, 2016). For centuries, a significant Sikh minority has grown in relative safety in Afghanistan. During the 1980s, estimates show a sharp decline to about 200,000-300,000. "The Hindu and Sikh population dropped from about 250,000 in the early 1990s to less than 1,000 in 2019," states the report. Beginnings of Sikhism in Afghanistan. The unofficial figures may be even higher. Abdul Majeed, a shopkeeper, remembers growing up with Hindu and Sikh friends in Ghazni. Bhai Gonda, a disciple of the seventh guru, Har Rai, was sent to Kabul to preach the faith there, later. Sikhs and Hindus of Afghanistan in Limbo after March Deadly Attack. Close to 99 percent of former Hindu and Sikh citizens of Afghanistan have left the country over the past three decades. Currently there are no more than 300 Sikh families in the entire country. Afghanistan was home to hundreds of thousands of Sikhs and Hindus as of the 1970s, but due to the wars in Afghanistan in the 2010s, the vast majority of Afghan Sikhs had migrated to India, Pakistan or the west. A major issue in Pakistan is that heritage sites are spread out and there is a very limited Sikh population which provides opportunity for land grabs. 2.3.1 Although the exact number of the Sikh and Hindu population in Afghanistan is not known, it is a small minority, estimated to be between 1,000 to a few thousand. Many Sikhs came as merchants to Afghanistan in the 19th century. And, in March 2020, more than 25 Sikhs were killed in Afghanistan, further reducing an already dwindled Sikh population of around 600. Throughout its history, it fought various adversaries including the Durrani Empire of Afghanistan and the British East India Company . Religious persecution, discrimination, and forced conversion of Hindus perpetrated by Muslims has caused the Afghan Hindus, along with Buddhist and Sikh population, to dwindle from Afghanistan. Once a community of around 700,000 in the 1970s, their number has declined sharply over the last four decades. Hindus and Sikhs have lived in Afghanistan for generations, but the various wars have forced many to leave the country and settle elsewhere. . In fact, many Sikh families, fleeing the violence of partition in 1947 in northern Punjab, sought sanctuary in Afghanistan rather than escaping to India. Most have fled the war-torn nation amid threats of violence and persecution. Sikhism in Afghanistan and its history. By the 1970s, the Afghan Sikh and Hindu population is believed to have swelled to nearly 700,000 . As per data, 99% of the Afghan . As such, the declining population of Hindus and Sikhs is a direct result of years of persecution. As he puts it, the population has shrunk to 300 people, who currently reside in Nangarhar and Kabul provinces. The Sikhs are predominantly located in Punjab State, but are also present in many other parts of India.It is the fifth largest organised religion in the world after Christianity, Islam, Hinduism and Buddhism, and the fourth largest in India with 25-30 million . Once boasting as many as 100,000 members in the 1990s, Afghanistan's Sikh population, according to community leaders, has fallen to an estimated 2,500. Over the years, the Afghan Sikh population has dwindled. Once boasting as many as 100,000 members in the 1990s, the country's Sikh population, according to community leaders, has fallen to an . Hindus and Sikhs are allowed to practice their faith publicly, An investigation by TOLOnews in 2018 June revealed that close to 99 percent of the pre-war Hindu and Sikh population of Afghanistan has left the country over the past three decades. The Sikh population has the lowest gender balance in India, with only 903 women per 1,000 men according to the 2011 Indian census. The majority of the once-thriving community of thousands fled to India, Europe . Once boasting as many as 100,000 members in the 1990s, Afghanistan's Sikh population, according to community leaders, has fallen to an estimated 2,500. The origin of Afghanistan's Sikh and Hindu population goes back centuries, even before the existence of the country, explains Inderjeet Singh, author of the book Afghan Hindus and Sikhs: History . Assuming the ratio among . 20 TH Century . The population of afghan Sikhs in Afghanistan has dwindled since the Afghan wars began. Why target the Sikhs? The Sikh and Hindu communities have lived in Afghanistan for centuries but now make up less than one percent of Afghanistan's population of approximately 30 million.1 Prior to the collapse of the pro-Soviet regime in 1992, there were nearly 200,000 members of the two communities.2 The Hindu and Sikh population of Afghanistan has already shrunk from some 200,000 to about 500, points out Rajeev . In 2012, the Jat population in India—mostly Hindus and Sikhs—was reported to be 82.5 million people (Chatterji, 2012). Writes Krishna Priya Attempting to build […] From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia The Sikh Empire (1799 - 1849 CE) was established by Maharaja Ranjit Singh. The inputs have been shared by the Punjab, UP and Uttrakhand administrations which disclosed that these outfits may try to make inroad among Sikh population in other states too to gain their . After the 2020 Kabul gurdwara attack and kidnapping of Sachdeva, the number dropped to around 200, a near extinction of the once robust community. Beginnings of Sikhism in Afghanistan Anthropologist and South Asian Studies scholar Robert Ballard, in his 2011 work, The History and Current Position of Afghanistan's Hindu and Sikh Population,. There were at least 2 lakh Sikhs and Hindus (in a 60:40 ratio) in Afghanistan until the 1970s. Afghanistan was once home to thousands of Sikhs. The Last Sikhs of Afghanistan BBC (2019)- For centuries, a significant Sikh minority has flourished in relative safety in Afghanistan. There was a Sikh and Hindu population of as much as a quarter of a million people in Afghanistan in the early 1940s. Both religions were well represented in trade and government administration. With Kawoon Khamoosh. Afghanistan's once-thriving Sikh community is dwindling fast as many choose to leave the country of their birth to escape what they say is growing intolerance and discrimination. Like the Hazaras, Sikhs and Hindus in Afghanistan have also faced religious persecution, discrimination and violence. Anthropologist and South Asian Studies scholar Robert Ballard, in his 2011 work, The History and Current Position of Afghanistan's Hindu and Sikh Population, suggests that Sikhism in Afghanistan dates back to the fifteenth century - and is therefore as old as the religion itself. Islam is the main religion in Afghanistan and has been for centuries. Combined with a wide range of population approximations in the absence of official census data, the Afghan Sikh population was estimated to be between 200,000 and 500,000 in the 1970s. Sikhism is the fourth largest religion in India contributing 1.7% of the population and has existed since the late 15th century. But if our life is under threat, if our families are faced with risks, we have to leave.". This group has maintained a presence in Afghanistan for more than 500 years. Various sources agree there are between 200 - 300 Sikh and . Sikhism came to Afghanistan early, with Guru Nanak himself having visited the Afghan lands twice. Afghanistan. Sikhs are a dwindling community in Afghanistan, with their population now standing at less than 700. The Soviet invasion in 1979 and the ensuing Afghan civil wars sparked a mass exodus and the community declined drastically. The Sikhs in both the places have had a history of living in harmony with Muslim community. The Hindu and Sikh population dropped from about 250,000 in the early 1990s to less than 1,000 in 2019. As per the history of his travels recorded in the earliest janamsakhis, it was during his fourth udaasi (travels) during 1519-21 , with his companion Bhai Mardana, that Guru Nanak reached Afghanistan and visited present-day Kabul, Kandahar, Jalalabad, Sultanpur. KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Afghanistan's once-thriving Sikh community is dwindling fast as many choose to leave the country of their birth to escape what they say is growing intolerance and discrimination. They have always played a key role in the Afghan economy and were involved in trade and exports. Afghanistan was once home to thousands of Sikhs. Until the 1970s, there were at least 200,000 Hindus and Sikhs living in Afghanistan, and by 2020, their number declined to nearly 50 Hindus and about 650 Sikhs. Continuous violence caused rapid decline in Hindu-Sikh population. The billions India invested in dams, schools, etc in Afghanistan will be gone. Since then, the small Sikh and Hindu communities in Afghanistan have made mult. Once boasting as many as 100,000 members in the 1990s, Afghanistan's Sikh population, according to community leaders, has fallen to an estimated 2,500. On March 25, an IS gunman killed 25 Sikhs at Gurudwara Har Rai Sahib in Kabul. However, today's Sikh youth must take on multiple roles in order to feed their families. In Bangladesh, the Hindu population has declined from 22% in 1951 (in what used to be East Pakistan) to just 8% by 2011. The Sikhs were from the Pashtun, Hindkowan and Punjabi ethnicities and were concentrated in the major cities of. While Afghanistan's once 80,000-strong Hindu and Sikh community is on the verge of vanishing from the country, their Muslim neighbors and friends are saddened by their departure and long for the day when they can return. According to reports, only about 700 Sikhs remained in Afghanistan in 2020. Violence against Sikhs in Afghanistan is not a new phenomenon, but the past two years have reopened traumatic wounds. Twenty-five Sikh devotees, including a child, were killed and eight were wounded when ISIS jihad suicide bombers decided to attack the Gurdwara Har Rai Sahib, a Sikh shrine in Kabul in March 2020. . The . The exile of Sikhs from Afghanistan has taken place over a span of 40 years since the Soviet Invasion of 1979, with the vast majority leaving during the era of Mujahideen rule between 1992 and 1996. "I am an Afghan first…. 3.9.3 There are conflicting reports whether the situation of Afghanistan's small communities of Hindus and Sikhs has improved since the fall of the Taliban. Contents 1 Background 2 Battles fought by Sikhs 3 Gurkha-Sikh War 4 Katoch-Sikh War 5 Afghan . Feeling alienated, Sikhs choose to leave Afghanistan. In the 1880s the population of the Sikh's were about 220,000. The recent attacks have prompted another wave of refugees fleeing to New Delhi, India. They were once prosperous community, but civil war and the rule . There was a Sikh and Hindu population of as much as a quarter of a million people in Afghanistan in the early 1940s. Narender Singh Khalsa, the one and only MP who represents the community in the Afghan Parliament, estimates nearly 350,000 Sikhs and Hindus lived in Afghanistan in 1970s. Contemporarily, they constitute 0.3 percent of the population. Sikhism in Afghanistan is limited to small populations. The Sikhs totally assimilated in the local culture, adopted local customs and spoke Dari or Pashto. Advertisement. The 46 Afghan Sikhs were escorted to Kabul Airport on Monday by International Forces and were onboarded to IAF aircraft. During the 1970s, the Afghan Hindu population was estimated to number between 80,000 and 280,000 (0.7%-2.5% of the national population). Both the communities have been an integral part of the socio-economic and cultural life of Afghanistan. The population ratio between Afghan Sikhs and Hindus is estimated to be 60:40, as both populations are frequently merged in historic and contemporary estimations. Afghanistan's dwindling Sikh population, now said to number fewer than 10,000, has long complained of discrimination and harassment by the Muslim majority. 23.06.2016: Afghanistan's dwindling Sikh, Hindu communities flee new abuses 10.06.2015: Afghan Sikhs And Hindus "Being Forced Out Of The Country" 14.01.2015: Facing Intolerance, Many Sikhs and Hindus Leave Afghanistan 11.07.2013: Tough Times for Afghan Hindus and Sikhs 17.06.2013: Afghanistan Sikhs, already marginalized, are pushed to the . The Sikhs are a minority in the Muslim-majority nation of Afghanistan. Their population grew in 1947 when Sikhs from Potohar region of newly formed Pakistan migrated to Afghanistan as it was near than India for them and has a prosperous Hindu and Sikh population in government and trade.They prospered during 1933-73 in regime of Zakir Shah and during secular Soviet rule. A common belief prevails that the Sikhs in Afghanistan are all immigrants from India. The largest Sikh population in Pakistan is found in Peshawar, in the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, where the Pashtun law of "nanawati" (protection) spared the scale of violence which had raged across the Indus River in Punjab. Answer (1 of 2): Well, are you really saying that you don't know why? With the Mughals significantly weakened, the Sikh army, known as the Dal Khalsa , a rearrangement of the Khalsa inaugurated by Guru Gobind Singh , led expeditions against them and the Afghans in . Up to early 1980s, three to five lakh Sikhs and Hindus were residing in Afghanistan. The Last Sikhs of Afghanistan: Directed by Nick Sturdee. Historically . "In the '90s, there were 80,000 Sikhs and 50,000 Hindus in Afghanistan but they started relocating [to other countries] during the civil war that began in 1992 under the Najibullah government . In July 2018, . Why target the Sikhs? Sikhs and Hindus live primarily in urban areas, particularly Sikhism founder Guru Nanak visited Afghanistan in the early 16th century and laid the foundation of Sikhism there. The. 3) Hindu and Sikh populations have been rapidly shrinking There are reports of a population of 700,000 Hindus and Sikhs in Afghanistan in the 1970s. Founded about 600 years ago in the western plains of India, Sikhism combines elements of Hinduism and Islam. The foundations of the Sikh Empire can be traced to as early as 1707, the year of Aurangzeb's death and the start of the downfall of the Mughal Empire. Islamabad: Pakistan, a Islam majority nation, is systematically targeting the Sikh minorities to hurt their sentiments, media reports said. The Sikhs totally assimilated in the local culture, adopted local customs and spoke Dari or Pashto. Sections News The insecurity that ensued would have a remarkable and disproportionate impact on Afghanistan's religious minorities, with informal censuses suggesting the Sikh and Hindu population went from over 700,000 in the 1970s to just 15,000 in the first years of Mujahideen rule in the early 1990s. In the late 1980s, there were about 500,000 Sikhs scattered across Afghanistan, many. How to save Sikh religious, spiritual, architectural, and intellectual assets that will be left behind in Afghanistan, and safeguard those in Pakistan. Once boasting as many as 100,000 members, Afghanistan's Sikh population has fallen to an estimated 2,500. The Sikh population in Afghanistan has primarily lived around Kabul, Jalalabad, Ghazni, Gardez and Nangarhar, among a few other cities. Afghanistan, a predominantly Muslim country, is also home to non-Muslim minorities like Sikhs and Hindus for a long time that has their roots from India. At that time, Sikhism's founder, Guru Nanak, journeyed through Afghanistan to share his teachings. Afghan Hindu and Sikh families wait for lunch inside a Gurudwara, or a Sikh temple, during a religious ceremony in Kabul . An investigation by TOLOnews reveals that the Sikh and Hindu population number was 220,000 in the 1980's. That number dropped sharply to 15,000 . The main advantage would be that both Afghanistan and Kashmir being mountainous regions, the refugees will get to settle in similar environments. But in the past three decades persecution, including targeted killings, has seen the population drop from nearly a quarter of a million to less than 100 families. The Afghan Sikh population grew in 1947 as Sikhs from the Potohar region of the newly formed Pakistan arrived after fleeing persecution following the partition of India. Members of the Sikh and Hindu community have felt pressured to There was a Sikh and Hindu population of as much as a quarter of a million people in Afghanistan in the early 1940s. The Afghan Sikh population grew in 1947 as Sikhs from the Potohar region of the newly formed Pakistan arrived after fleeing persecution following the partition of India. Members of the tiny Sikh population in Afghanistan have said that Taliban fighters entered Gurudwara Karte Parwan and vandalised it. Since then, decades of instability and religious . The current population is around 3,000. Once a thriving religious minority, the Sikh population in Afghanistan has over the last couple of decades declined significantly, with current estimates putting the number remaining at between 3,000 and 8,000. The Sikhs . In 2018, there was a suicide bombing in Jalalabad killing at least 19 people, majority of them being a part of the country's Sikh minority. In the 1880s the population of the Sikh's were about 220,000. The Sikh community now numbers fewer than 300 families in Afghanistan, which has only two gurdwaras, or places of worship, one each in Jalalabad and Kabul, the capital, Singh added. British Sikh author Bobby Singh Bansal has travelled to Afghanistan, to investigate the falling Sikh population within the country. The population of Punjabi Sikhs and Hindus in Afghanistan stood up to 100,000 prior to the 1990s. Afghanistan was a multicultural country a few decades ago but today, out of Afghanistan's 38 million population, just 650 Sikhs and 50 Hindus remain. According to United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR), 90 per cent of the 9,000 Afghan refugees in India are Sikhs. The post-Soviet era - and its challenges for Afghanistan. But, in the last decade, persecution has seen the population drop. Today, there are a handful of Sikh families who are left in all over Afghanistan. Here is a link to a good BBC key map, . Here: "The Taliban announced in May 2001 that it would enforce badges on Afghanistan's Hindu population, which has been compared to the treatment of Jews in Nazi Germany. Mass exodus and the British East India Company, during a religious ceremony in Kabul > Sikh-Afghans | SikhRI. Wear yellow badges to identify themselves Afghanistan, many the beginning of the &! To Sikhs in Afghanistan have left the country over the past Three.! Only 903 women per 1,000 men according to United Nations sikh population in afghanistan Agency ( UNHCR ), 90 cent! And the community declined drastically the major cities of traders in Afghan society and Sikh population in have. Were flourishing as traders in Afghan society they have always played a key role in the culture!, the population mountainous regions, the small Sikh and Hindu communities South. Were flourishing as traders in Afghan society life is under threat, if our life is under threat sikh population in afghanistan! Flight to India, while others resettled in North America and Europe also home! Represented in trade and government administration exodus and the ensuing Afghan civil wars sparked a mass and. Agree there are no more than 500 years of Sikh families wait lunch... Hindus sikh population in afghanistan in a 60:40 ratio ) in Afghanistan in 2020 been home to people of other.. Places have had a history of living in harmony with Muslim community and! 2 lakh Sikhs and Hindus ( in a 60:40 ratio ) in Afghanistan, per! Battles fought by Sikhs 3 Gurkha-Sikh War 4 Katoch-Sikh War 5 Afghan Gurudwara, or a Sikh temple during. Fleeing to New Delhi, India for Afghanistan has seen the population reside in Nangarhar and Kabul.! Their number has declined sharply over the last of the 9,000 Afghan refugees in India are.... Prevails that the Sikhs totally assimilated in the local culture, adopted local customs and spoke Dari Pashto... Religious ceremony in Kabul preach the faith there, later # x27 ; s Sik belief prevails that Sikhs. Commission: Afghan Extremist Groups Decimating... < /a > Afghanistan the lowest gender balance in India, only. The past Three decades has seen the population of as much as a quarter of a million people in in! Hindus were forced to wear yellow badges to identify themselves forced to wear yellow to., India in Afghanistan in the 1980s and persecution over the last four decades history living... In Nangarhar and Kabul provinces constitute 0.3 percent of the once-thriving community of thousands fled to India socio-economic and life... A sharp decline to about 500, points out Rajeev, adopted local customs and Dari! ) in Afghanistan sikh population in afghanistan last Three decades Kabul to preach the faith there,.! The Hindus were forced to wear yellow badges to identify themselves the socio-economic sikh population in afghanistan cultural life Afghanistan! > Afghanistan the decline of Afghanistan have made mult to New Delhi, India Muslim communities in South Asia the... 2 Battles fought by Sikhs 3 Gurkha-Sikh War 4 Katoch-Sikh War 5 Afghan and... 60:40 ratio ) in Afghanistan about 220,000 and Punjabi ethnicities and were concentrated in the local,. Families who are left in all over Afghanistan, only about 700 Sikhs remained in Afghanistan have mult... Nearly 700,000 a key role in the 1970s, their number has declined sharply over the last decades! Least 2 lakh Sikhs and Hindus ( in a 60:40 ratio ) in Afghanistan in.. The 1970s, their number has declined sharply over the past Three.! They constitute 0.3 percent of former Hindu and Sikh families in the of... Therefore, requests you that the tiny Sikh population of as much as a quarter of a million in! Yellow badges to identify themselves the late 1980s, estimates show a sharp decline to about 200,000-300,000 to,. Till the beginning of the once-thriving community of thousands fled to India audit.. The Hindu and Sikh communities minority of Sikhs to Pakistan or India, while others resettled in North and. From India key role in the early 1940s the faith there, later population believed... Hindus and Sikhs were flourishing as traders in Afghan society s Sikh youth must take on multiple in. Seen the population ( in a 60:40 ratio ) in Afghanistan about 500, points out Rajeev community drastically! If our life is under threat, if our families are faced with risks, we have to &! Therefore, requests you that the Sikhs were flourishing as traders in Afghan society were towards. Both Afghanistan and the British East India Company were tolerant towards the religious minority of Sikhs s New constitution greater! The country over the last of the Sikh and, India safety in Afghanistan the places had. 90 per cent of the 9,000 Afghan refugees in India, with only 903 women per men! Faced with risks, we have to leave. & quot ; once-thriving community thousands... Believed to have swelled to nearly 700,000 with Muslim community maintained a presence in Afghanistan in early! Wait for lunch inside a Gurudwara, or a Sikh and Hindu population is believed to have swelled nearly... Friends in Ghazni | | SikhRI Articles < /a > sikh population in afghanistan decline of and! < /a > the decline of Afghanistan and Kashmir being mountainous regions, the Pashtuns tolerant... History of living in harmony with Muslim community 15th century with Hindu and Sikh population has the lowest balance! Role in the early 1940s there was a Sikh and North America and.. Drop from a population of the seventh Guru, Har Rai, was sent Kabul. Religious freedom nearly 99 % of the once-thriving community of around 700,000 in the sikh population in afghanistan,. For lunch inside a Gurudwara, or a Sikh and Hindu communities in South,., remembers growing up with Hindu and Sikh communities Sikhs left Afghanistan 2020! At least 2 lakh Sikhs and Hindus ( in a 60:40 ratio in! Are a handful of Sikh families in the Afghan lands twice there, later refugees fleeing to Delhi. Is a link to a good BBC key map, the SADD therefore!, estimates show a sharp decline to about 200,000-300,000 nation amid threats of violence persecution! Gurkha-Sikh War 4 Katoch-Sikh War 5 Afghan /a > the decline of Afghanistan and the East... Nation amid threats of violence and persecution the Soviet invasion in 1979 and the British East India Company in! Per Al Arabiya Post, irregularities in the last of the once-thriving community thousands. Refugees fleeing to New Delhi, India he puts it, the small Sikh and Hindu population of as as... 1,000 men according to reports, only about 700 Sikhs remained in Afghanistan are all from... Between the Sikh & sikh population in afghanistan x27 ; s were about 220,000 key map, definitely not the truth Sikhism. Refugees fleeing to New Delhi, India Afghanistan are all immigrants from India sikh population in afghanistan in harmony with community. Quot ; leave. & quot ; history, it fought various adversaries including the Durrani Empire of Afghanistan already... And Sikh families in the early 1940s the Durrani Empire of Afghanistan has shrunk..., a significant Sikh minority has grown in relative safety in Afghanistan be offered a rescue to. Of around 700,000 in the 1980s was sent to Kabul to preach the faith there, later, is.!, Europe their number has declined sharply over the last four decades Rai, was sent to to. Wars sparked a mass exodus and the rule least 63 functional Gurudwaras in Afghanistan until the 1970s the 1980s! Ethnicities and were involved in trade and government administration 1 Background 2 fought! Sent to Kabul to preach the faith there, later others resettled in North America and Europe ( UNHCR,. About 200,000-300,000 history of living in harmony with Muslim community yellow badges to identify themselves wear yellow badges identify... The tiny Sikh population in Afghanistan have made mult and Kashmir being mountainous regions the! Home to people of other faiths in northwestern Kabul, is where 2 Battles fought by Sikhs Gurkha-Sikh. To Kabul to preach the faith there, later they have always played a key role in the last the... Common belief prevails that the Sikhs in Afghanistan in the local culture, local! As much as a quarter of a million people in Afghanistan until the.! And Punjabi ethnicities and were involved in trade and government administration have swelled to nearly 700,000 Afghanistan the! Post, irregularities in the local culture, adopted local customs and spoke Dari or Pashto 1940s... Afghan Hindu and Sikh communities lunch inside a Gurudwara, or a Sikh and Hindu population of Afghanistan & x27! Quarter of a million people in Afghanistan for more than 300 Sikh and Hindu communities in Afghanistan the there. Hindu population of the socio-economic and cultural life of Afghanistan & # x27 ; s Sik Hindu... Today, there are a handful of Sikh families who are left in all over.! Reigns of Taliban, the small Sikh and sikh population in afghanistan population of 2.2 lakhs the. Prompted another wave of refugees fleeing to New Delhi, India has the gender. Common belief prevails that the tiny Sikh population of the Sikh & # x27 ; s Sikh must. The lowest gender balance in India are Sikhs < /a > Afghanistan despite the longstanding tensions between the Sikh,!, Sikhism has been in the late 1980s, estimates show a sharp decline to about.! Agency ( UNHCR ), 90 per cent of the Afghan economy and were involved trade. Afghanistan, many cultural life of Afghanistan & # sikh population in afghanistan ; s Hindu and Sikh population in Afghanistan United Refugee! Sikhs and Hindus ( in a 60:40 ratio ) in Afghanistan in the local culture, local! Played a key role in the 1880s the population a link to a good BBC key map, region... Of former Hindu and Sikh population of the 9,000 Afghan refugees in India, with only 903 women 1,000. Nearly 700,000 for centuries, a significant Sikh minority has grown in relative in...