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First Sikh officer in Pakistan army

B. Muralidhar Reddy

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Army has got its first Sikh officer in its 58 years of history. Harcharan Singh (19) been who has commissioned in the army as an officer recently, hails from Nankana Sahib, the birth place of Guru Nanak.

On paper there is no bar on the minorities in Pakistan from joining the military but neither a Hindu nor a Sikh could get selected for the army service since the birth of the country in 1947.

Minorities in Pakistan account for fewer than three per cent of the 145 million population. According to the Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR) several Christians in the country have served in the army. Mr. Harcharan Singh, who has just been inducted as an officer in the Pakistan Army, told English daily, Dawn that he was sceptical about his selection while appearing in the preliminary tests.

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First Sikh officer in Pakistan army

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