'We Had Been Living Peacefully for So Many Years': Pak Shelling Leaves Poonch's Sikh Population in Shock

Jalandhar: Intense shelling for over 12 hours from May 7 to the afternoon of May 8, has claimed the lives of 16 civilians and left over 50 injured.

The deceased include eight Muslims including noted Maulvi Qari Mohammad Iqbal of Madrasa Jamia Zia-ul-Uloom, a brother sister-duo Zain and Zoya, who were killed while they were trying to move out of their house in Poonch for a safe zone, four Sikhs including three men and a woman, and a Hindu boy, footage of whose head injury has been shared multiple times on social media.

The shelling also damaged one of the oldest gurdwaras at Poonch, the Sri Guru Singh Sabha, which is situated close to the Line of Control or LoC and is held sacred.

Among the deceased in the Sikh community are ex-serviceman Amarjeet Singh, a gurdwara raagi Amrik Singh and a shopkeeper Ranjit Singh.

Locals from Poonch shared that the recent shellings bring back memories of the Kargil war.

Also read: 'Never Seen Such Scenes Before': Poonch Residents Live Through Horror of Shelling by Pakistan

Talking to The Wire, Narinder Singh, the president of District Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee of the Poonch district in Jammu said that the extent of loss because of the cross-border firing was much more than what has been reported in the media so far. The LoC is situated just two kilometres away from Poonch, he stressed.

“Some shells fell near the gurdwara, damaging the window panes and doors. Shards of glass scattered inside the gurdwara premises while the inside premises were damaged too,” he said. Singh said that the three Sikh victims did not die in the shelling on the gurdwara but while they were in their houses.

He said that one of the deceased, Amarjeet Singh, was an ex-serviceman from an infantry regiment and was the Gurdwara Sri Guru Singh Sabha cashier.

Amrik Singh, a Raagi or Sikh musician, was killed when a splinter hit him while he was sitting in his shop with the shutter down. “Bhai Amrik Singh was associated with Baithak Sant Bhai Mohar Singh Sahib gurdwara for the last 28 years,” Narinder Singh said.

Ranjit Singh, another deceased, owned a shop. Ruby Kaur, a resident of Mankote village in Poonch, also lost her life.

“People are in panic. Following continuous shelling nearly 70% of the population from Poonch has migrated to remote areas or their ancestral villages in the hills. However, we are still here. Today, morning (May 8, 2025), we cleaned the gurdwara, held regular prayers and announced that people should remain either in the basements or on the ground floor to avoid loss of life,” he said.

Narinder Singh also shared that there were around 25,000 to 30,000 Sikhs in Poonch. “Poonch has a similar number of Hindus and Muslim population too. Everybody has been living peacefully and without any fear for many years. However, the recent shelling has made life miserable for people here,” he added.

Another native, Zulfqar Ahmad, who is the president of the district Youth Congress, Poonch, said that the injured were admitted to Raja Sukhdev Singh District Hospital, Poonch or were referred to the Government Medical College & Hospital (GMC) at Jammu and the GMC at Rajouri.

“Perhaps, this is the first time that youth in Poonch are witnessing shelling from Pakistan," he added.

A Poonch-based advocate Sajid Bukhari Alig also told The Wire that it was almost after 15 years that their region witnessed shelling. “Shockingly, the shelling took place in the main market area of Poonch, where most of the shops, houses and government buildings were situated," he said.

Sri Akal Takth Sahib and SAD express grief

Officiating Jathedar Giani Kuldeep Singh Gargajj strongly condemned the attack.

In a press statement, Jathedar Gargajj emphasised that both nations’ governments must immediately make sincere efforts to restore peace. “War always severely harms humanity, often resulting in the deaths of many innocent people,” he urged.

Similarly, condemning the attack, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal demanded adequate compensation to the victim families and wrote on X:

“Strongly condemn the inhuman attack by Pakistani forces on the sacred Central Gurdwara Sri Guru Singh Sabha Sahib in Poonch, in which three innocent Gursikhs, including Bhai Amrik Singh Ji (a raagi Singh), Bhai Amarjeet Singh and Bhai Ranjit Singh lost their lives. SAD expresses complete solidarity with the families of the deceased Gursikhs and prays for peace for the departed and courage for their friends and loved ones.”

“The Sikhs have always been, and will continue to be, the sword arm of the country. We stand like a rock with our armed forces. Although SAD and our country stand for peace, if our honour is challenged by the enemy, we need no reminder to fulfil our patriotic duties,” he wrote.