Kashmiri girls were being humiliated by certain political leaders and others on the social media after special status for Jammu and Kashmir under Section 370 was scrapped. (Express File Photo) Kashmiri girls were being humiliated by certain political leaders and others on the social media after special status for Jammu and Kashmir under Section 370 was scrapped. (Express File Photo)

An Akal Takht Jathedar (clergy) Friday urged to the Sikh community to come forward and make it their “religious duty” to defend and protect the honour of Kashmiri girls who were being humiliated by certain political leaders and others on the social media after special status for Jammu and Kashmir under Section 370 was scrapped.

Akal Takht is the highest temporal seat of the Sikhs.

“God has given equal rights to all human beings and it is a crime to differentiate against anyone on the basis of gender, caste or religion. The kind of commands given by elected representatives on social media against the girls of Kashmir after the removal of special status under Section 370 are not only defamatory but also unforgivable,” Jathedar Giani Harpreet Singh said in a statement.

Without naming anybody, the jethedar said, “The manner in which some people are posting pictures of Kashmiri daughters on social media has hurt India’s image. Such comments objectify women. At the same time, these people have forgotten that a woman is also a mother, daughter, sister and a wife. It is women who has the power of creation”.

Again desisting from naming any person or community, he said that the same “mob”, which was now targeting the Kashmiri women, “had reacted in the same way and attacked the Sikh women during riots of 1984”.

“Kashmiri women are part of our society. It is our religious duty to defend their honour. Sikhs should come forward to protect the honour of Kashmiri women. It is our duty and it is our history,” he said.

Meanwhile, a Sikh activist from Delhi, Harminder Singh Ahluwalia, collected Rs 4 lakh in donations to buy tickets to help 34 Kashmiri girls, stuck in Maharashtra, reach Srinagar. Harminder and two others also accompanied the girls.

📣 The Indian Express is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel (@indianexpress) and stay updated with the latest headlines

For all the latest India News, download Indian Express App.