Pakistani Hindus took to the street to protest after a Hindu temple
was demolished in Pakistan.The incident occured on Saturday when the
century-old temple, the Shri Rama Pir Mandir in Karachi's Soldier Bazaar
area was demolished by a private builder along with three or four
houses located next to it, thus rendering nearly 40 people homeless.
According to the Express Tribune, a local builder in possession of the land ordered the hasty demolition to rid the land of encroachers.He had given notice to residents in 2007 to vacate the properties.But the victims are angry as the demolition took place hours before the the court issued an order protecting it from immediate demolition.The Sindh High Court had issued a stay order restraining the local administration and the private builder from demolishing the temple till December 7.
"The temple was over 50 years old," Ramesh Kumar Vankwani, founder of the Pakistan Hindu Council, told The Wall Street Journal.He said demonstrations would continue until the government responded, adding that “this is the third such incident in three months."
Krishna Mandir, in a residential area of Karachi, was damaged in September during protests against an anti-Islam movie. In the same month a temple erected by Hindu families living in Peshawar was demolished in a land dispute, Mr. Vankwani said.
The authorities have so far denied any religious angle in the proceedings.The local police has gone to the extent of denying the existence of the temple completely. The police maintained that they had orders to remove the encroachments. DSP Pervaiz Iqbal of Nabi Buksh police station said, “There was no temple there. There were just Hindu gods present inside the houses and we made sure that they were safe.”The people were given plenty of time to remove their belongings out of the house, he said. Supporting this theory, Military Lands and Cantonment director Zeenat Ahmed said that the operation was against illegal occupants and "encroachers have no religion."
But the now homeless victims are demanding justice and feel they were discriminated against as they were Hindus.“They destroyed our mandir and humiliated our gods,” said an angry Prakash, pointing towards the huge debris of concrete, stones and walls of the temple. The demolishing team did place the statues of four Hindu deities on the side but the residents accused them of taking away their gold jewellery and crowns and they demanded that a idol of Lord Shankar be returned to them.
The homeless as well as other members of the Hindu community took part in a protest against the injustice meted out to them. "We don’t have any shelter. Our children spent Saturday night shivering in the cold. We were made homeless in just seconds. What was our fault?", asked a victim.The angry crowd demanded the government arrange tickets to India for them. “If you don’t want us, we will go to India,", said one. Another man added that, “our temple is as sacred to us as your mosque is to you.”
The Pakistani government has been slow in reacting to this sensitive incident so far.The provincial minorities minister, Mohan Lal, hasn't even visited the site or issued any statement. On Monday, President Asif Ali Zardari directed authorities concerned to submit a report in this regard.
http://www.indiatimes.com/asia/hindu-temple-demolished-in-pakistan-49136.html
According to the Express Tribune, a local builder in possession of the land ordered the hasty demolition to rid the land of encroachers.He had given notice to residents in 2007 to vacate the properties.But the victims are angry as the demolition took place hours before the the court issued an order protecting it from immediate demolition.The Sindh High Court had issued a stay order restraining the local administration and the private builder from demolishing the temple till December 7.
"The temple was over 50 years old," Ramesh Kumar Vankwani, founder of the Pakistan Hindu Council, told The Wall Street Journal.He said demonstrations would continue until the government responded, adding that “this is the third such incident in three months."
Krishna Mandir, in a residential area of Karachi, was damaged in September during protests against an anti-Islam movie. In the same month a temple erected by Hindu families living in Peshawar was demolished in a land dispute, Mr. Vankwani said.
The authorities have so far denied any religious angle in the proceedings.The local police has gone to the extent of denying the existence of the temple completely. The police maintained that they had orders to remove the encroachments. DSP Pervaiz Iqbal of Nabi Buksh police station said, “There was no temple there. There were just Hindu gods present inside the houses and we made sure that they were safe.”The people were given plenty of time to remove their belongings out of the house, he said. Supporting this theory, Military Lands and Cantonment director Zeenat Ahmed said that the operation was against illegal occupants and "encroachers have no religion."
But the now homeless victims are demanding justice and feel they were discriminated against as they were Hindus.“They destroyed our mandir and humiliated our gods,” said an angry Prakash, pointing towards the huge debris of concrete, stones and walls of the temple. The demolishing team did place the statues of four Hindu deities on the side but the residents accused them of taking away their gold jewellery and crowns and they demanded that a idol of Lord Shankar be returned to them.
Members of Pakistani Hindu community react next to the rubble of a Hindu temple.
The homeless as well as other members of the Hindu community took part in a protest against the injustice meted out to them. "We don’t have any shelter. Our children spent Saturday night shivering in the cold. We were made homeless in just seconds. What was our fault?", asked a victim.The angry crowd demanded the government arrange tickets to India for them. “If you don’t want us, we will go to India,", said one. Another man added that, “our temple is as sacred to us as your mosque is to you.”
The Pakistani government has been slow in reacting to this sensitive incident so far.The provincial minorities minister, Mohan Lal, hasn't even visited the site or issued any statement. On Monday, President Asif Ali Zardari directed authorities concerned to submit a report in this regard.
http://www.indiatimes.com/asia/hindu-temple-demolished-in-pakistan-49136.html
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