Awtar Singh or Awtar Singh Khalsa (1966 - 1 July 2018) was an

Afghan Afghan may refer to: *Something of or related to Afghanistan, a country in Southern-Central Asia *Afghans, people or citizens of Afghanistan, typically of any ethnicity ** Afghan (ethnonym), the historic term applied strictly to people of the Pas ...

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

. He was the

Sikh Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism, Sikhism (Sikhi), a Monotheism, monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Gu ...

representative to the Loya Jirga from Paktia Province. He was the only non-Muslim representative there. His native tongue was

Punjabi Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to: * Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan * Punjabi language * Punjabi people * Punjabi dialects and languages Punjabi may also refer to: * Punjabi (horse), a British Th ...

. He was in charge of the main Sikh temple (

Gurdwara A gurdwara (sometimes written as gurudwara) (Gurmukhi: ਗੁਰਦੁਆਰਾ ''guradu'ārā'', meaning "Door to the Guru") is a place of assembly and worship for Sikhs. Sikhs also refer to gurdwaras as ''Gurdwara Sahib''. People from all faiths ...

) in Kabul. Singh was a member of the

Mesherano Jirga The House of Elders or Mesherano Jirga ( ps, د افغانستان مشرانو جرګه), was the upper house of the bicameral National Assembly of Afghanistan, alongside the lower House of the People (Wolesi Jirga). It was effectively diss ...

(upper house) for a term of five years, beginning in 2005. He had planned to contest the minority seat in the 2018 parliamentary elections. Singh was killed on 1 July 2018 in a suicide bombing in Jalalabad which killed 18 other people, mostly from Afghanistan's Sikh and Hindu minority. ISIL claimed responsibility for the attack. Singh was 52 and is survived by his wife and 4 children, one of whom was injured in the blast. His son

Narendra Singh Khalsa Narendra Singh Khalsa is a Sikh Afghan politician. In January 2019, he secured a seat in the Lower House of the Parliament (Wolesi Jirga) after winning the 2018 Afghan parliamentary election on behalf of the Sikh and Hindu community. He is the son ...

contested the minority seat and won.

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Afghan Hindus, Sikhs see hope
The Tribune - June 9, 2002 2018 deaths Afghan Sikhs Place of birth missing Afghan people of Punjabi descent Assassinated Afghan politicians People from Paktia Province Members of the House of Elders (Afghanistan) 1966 births Asian politicians assassinated in the 2010s Politicians assassinated in 2018 {{Sikh-bio-stub