PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court on Thursday directed the Auqaf department and Peshawar administration to expedite the establishment of a crematorium in the district.

During the hearing into a petition, Justice Qaiser Rasheed and Justice Nasir Mehfooz gave the Auqaf secretary a month to produce report on the nonexistence of a crematorium and unavailability of a vehicle for transporting the bodies of Sikhs and Hindus in the province for cremation.

It later adjourned the hearing until Sept 12.

Sikhs resent province has no place for cremation

The petitioner, Babajee Gorpal Singh, a representative of Peshawar’s Sikh community, said the province had no crematorium for Sikhs and Hindus.

He sought the court’s orders for the government to establish a crematorium in Peshawar and provide a vehicle for shifting bodies of Sikhs to it.

A representative of Peshawar deputy commissioner’s office turned up and said the government had acquired a land measuring five kanals in Shahabkhel area for setting up crematorium.

He added that after completion of the legal formalities, the facility would be put up.

Former deputy attorney general Mohammad Khursheed Khan appeared for the petitioner and said the province had around 60,000 Sikhs and around 15,000 of them lived in Peshawar.

He said it was very unfortunate that the entire province had no crematorium and the government hadn’t provided any vehicle for transporting bodies for cremation.

The lawyer said members of the Sikh community had to shift bodies for cremation to Attock, which was far away from Peshawar and other areas in the province.

He said two days ago, Sikh civil society activist Charan Jeet Singh was killed in Peshawar and his body was taken to Attock for cremation.

The lawyer said the government had approved Rs30 million for the creation of crematorium and graveyard of Christian community in the financial year 2017-18.

He said the government had released Rs2.69 to the district administration on Sept 12, 2017, for purchasing an ambulance or vehicle to transport bodies of the Sikh community to the site of cremation.

DPO ORDER SET ASIDE: A bench consisting of Justice Ikramullah Khan and Justice Mussarat Hilali has declared illegal a circular issued by the Mardan district police officer asking the transgender persons to leave the district.

It accepted a joint petition filed by two transgender persons of Mardan, Zahoor Mehmood and Iftikhar, seeking orders for the local police to stop acting against their community members.

The respondents in the petition are the provincial police officer, Mardan district police officer, and deputy inspector general of police, Mardan Range.

Gul Rehman Mohmand, lawyer for the petitioners, said his client were the permanent residents of Mardan, lived in their own houses, and performed in different gatherings, weddings and events to earn a livelihood.

He claimed that the Mardan DPO had issued a circular asking all police officials in the district not to allow transgender persons to perform in events.

The lawyer said the DPO had also asked the transgender community to leave the district.

He claimed that the police had barred his clients from participating in events, gatherings and marriages as dancers and singers though it was the only source of their livelihood.

Published in Dawn, June 1st, 2018