It truly feels like ‘Naya Pakistan’ when our state head openly speaks for rights of our minority groups
LARKANA: This week renewed my faith in the dream of making ‘Naya Pakistan’ a reality. No doubt the government had stumbled in its early days and even made a few decisions that did not sit well with the public.
However, the condemnation, followed by action against the remarks by the now former Punjab information minister, Fayyaz Chouhan, against the Hindu community, was much welcome.
Insulting a community for their faith is absolutely inexcusable. The Hindu community has resided in this region for thousands of years. Many Hindu Sindhis have resided in the province for generations and have been a formidable force in building the province and the city of Karachi.
When Muslims sought refuge in Sindh after the Partition, those were Hindu Sindhis, along with Parsis and Muslims, that helped the refugees settle in and provided them with aid and shelter, and later created job opportunities for them. The Hindu community has also been the backbone of the economy as they were well educated and headed large businesses, which helped Pakistan survive its initial years.
Hearing Chouhan’s words against the community was extremely heartbreaking as not only was it disrespectful but also completely out of line with the spirit of Islam, which enjoins us to maintain good relations and protect people of other faiths.
The party’s condemnation, followed by his immediate removal and our Prime Minister’s recent speech was a much-needed action. It truly feels like a ‘Naya Pakistan’ when our state head openly speaks for the rights of our minority groups and ensures that they are protected from any discrimination from members of his government, setting a strong precedent.
Bilawal Soomro
Published in The Express Tribune, March 11th, 2019.
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