Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his counterpart in the Indian government on the treatment of Sikhs in India.

The British High Commission in India regularly discusses the treatment of minorities, including the Sikh community, with the Indian National Commission for Minorities and other relevant State level authorities. The then Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for International Development (Lynne Featherstone), during her visit to India in January also discussed a range of minority issues with India’s Minister of Minority Affairs, Dr Najma Heptulla.

We will continue to monitor the situation, and maintain a dialogue with the Indian government and authorities about minority rights issues.