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Saturday, April 20, 2024  
09 Shawwal 1445  

Frenzied mob attacks Hindu temple in Rahimyar Khan

The scenes on a video doing the rounds on social media showed a mob vandalizing a Hindu temple in a town in Rahimyar...
The video of the ransacking of the Hindu temple was widely shared on social media. AAJ TV
The video of the ransacking of the Hindu temple was widely shared on social media. AAJ TV

The scenes from a video doing the rounds on social media showed a mob vandalizing a Hindu temple in a town in Rahimyar Khan on Wednesday after reports that a Hindu child accused of urinating in a madrassa, was granted bail.

The video was widely circulated on social media and many took to condemn the incident and offer sympathies to all minorities who face discrimination, rejecting such bigotry.

The incident has also been noted by SAPM Shahbaz Gill who took to Twitter to condemn the incident and assure that an investigation had been ordered and culprits must be held accountable.

According to various media reports, Hafiz Muhammad Ibrahim, a cleric at Darul Uloom Arabia Taleemul Quran in Bhong, lodged a complaint under 295-A against a 9-year-old Hindu boy for urinating on the library of the school's premises.

The 295-A of Pakistan's penal code relates to injuring or defiling a religious place of worship with the intent to insult the religion.

According to the same media reports, the elders of the Hindu community came to offer an apology saying the boy was mentally challenged. It was believed the matter was resolved.

According to a report in The Hindu, Muslims and Hindus have lived peacefully in Bhong for decades.

However, upon hearing that the lower court granted the boy bail, a crowd was reportedly incited into shutting the shops and then some headed to the Hindu temple with rods and ransacked the premises -- videos of which have been widely shared.

Rangers were later deployed in the area according to district police spokesman Ahmed Nawaz Cheema, saying the administration had brought the situation under control.

PTI's MNA Dr Ramesh Vankwani also tweeted a video of violent scenes from the ransacking calling on the Chief Justice to take action.

Deputy Commissioner Dr Khuram Shehzad and District Police Officer Asad Sarfraz also visited the town late in the evening. They said they had beefed up security in the area especially to protect the Hindu families there.

He was quoted in The Hindu as saying no arrests had been made so far.

Although all religious groups have been accorded the right to practice their faith under Pakistan's Constitution, minority groups are frequently discriminated against.

This has been reported on by various international groups including Amnesty International. In their July 2020 release they wrote: "Pakistan’s authorities must protect the right to freedom of religion and belief for the country’s beleaguered Hindu community, including the construction of temples to exercise that right."

Last year the PTI government backtracked on its decision to build a temple for the Hindu community in the capital after protests by right wing organizations and politicians.

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