Peshawar: In a shameful incident, a mob led by members of Pakistan’s radical Islamist party demolished a temple and set it on fire in the deeply conservative northwestern city of Karak in Khyber Pukhtunkhwa, Pakistan.
The incident took place in the city of Karak and led to widespread condemnation from human rights activists and Minister of Human Rights of Pakistan, Shireen Mazari.
Mazari took to Twitter on Wednesday to condemn the burning of the temple and urged law enforcement officials to ensure the arrest of those involved.
“I strongly condemn the burning of a Hindu temple by a mob in Karak Khyber Pukhtunkhwa. The KP government must ensure that the culprits are brought to justice. MOHR is also making progress on this. We as a government have a responsibility to ensure the safety of all our citizens and their places of worship, ”Mazari tweeted.
Strongly condemn the burning of a Hindu temple by a mob in Karak Khyber Pukhtunkhwa. The KP government must ensure that the culprits are brought to justice. MOHR is also making progress on this. We, as a government, have a responsibility to ensure the safety of all our citizens and their places of worship.
– Shireen Mazari (@ ShireenMazari1) December 30, 2020
In addition, he reported that the district administration registered a FIR and detained several people. District Police Chief Irfan Ullah also said police detained several people for their role in the attack on the temple. Witnesses said the mob, led by activists and local leaders of the radical party Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam, attacked the temple after local Hindus received permission from the authorities to renovate it.
The incident comes weeks after the government allowed minorities Hindus to build a new temple in Islamabad on the recommendation of a council of clergy.
Although Muslims and Hindus generally live peacefully together in Pakistan, there have been other attacks on temples in recent years. Most of Pakistan’s minority Hindus emigrated to India in 1947 when India was divided by the government of Great Britain.
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