Pakistan: Minorities tense as 8 temples attacked in 18 months
Attacks on minority communities have been on the rise in Pakistan, making life fearful and troublesome for the Hindu community in the country. In the last 18 months, at least eight Hindu temples were reportedly attacked in Pakistan. The latest occurrence was in Bhong, where a mob stormed a temple after a minor Hindu boy accused of urinating in a madrassa received bail.
On July 4, an eight-year-old Hindu boy reportedly entered a madrassa in Bhong and was caught by the maulvi. He allegedly urinated upon being frightened. His father apologized and claimed that he was mentally challenged, but the maulvi lodged an FIR the next day. The local court later granted the boy bail since he was a minor. It remains unclear if he was arrested.
Following the boy's release, some people posted inflammatory anti-Hindu comments on social media over the next few days. On August 4, a mob went on to rampage at the Ganesh temple in Bhong in Punjab's Rahim Yar Khan district.
Pakistan's Supreme Court took suo motu cognizance of the Bhong incident on August 6. It has criticized the police for its failure to take action against the mob. It has also ordered the arrest of the culprits. Lal Chand Malhi, Parliamentary Secretary for human rights in Pakistan's National Assembly, notably blamed the police, saying it could have thwarted the attack by dispersing the crowd.
Apart from Hindus, other minorities in Pakistan such as Christians, Ahmadis, Hazaras, and Shias have also been subject to attacks in recent months. The Pakistan government said the mob that vandalized the temple in Bhong had also damaged the Shia Imambargah recently, hurting the sentiment of Shias. Similarly, cases of forced conversions have also been increasing in the country, The Wire reported.
Reacting to the incident, Ravi Dawani, secretary of the Pakistan Hindu Panchayat told The Wire, "Those who are of the belief that this was an attack only on Hindus should not forget that the flame of extremism will [eventually] engulf everyone [else] as well."
These are the other temples which have been attacked: Mata Rani Temple in Sindh in January 2020; Krishna Temple in Islamabad in July 2020; Hanuman Temple in Sindh, in August 2020; Shree Ram Dev Temple in Sindh in October 2020. The Mata Rani Bhatiyani Temple in Sindh, in October 2020; Teri Temple in Karak December 2020; a 100-year-old temple in Rawalpindi in March 2021.
Though the SC has ordered the culprits' arrest, local authorities in Bhong did not share any information on arrests. In the previous cases, too, it is not known whether the culprits were arrested or not. In the Teri Temple attack case, the culprits reportedly walked free, "forgiven" after a jirga (traditional meeting) held at the Governor's House in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
"Is this justice?" asked Kheal Das Kohistan, a member of the National Assembly from the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz). "If we do not get justice, we will keep protesting the attacks on temples." Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf member Lal Chand Malhi said, "You can rebuild the temple, but you can't make the fear among the Hindu community disappear."
