Hindu temple vandalised in Karachi

Incident caused panic and fear among the Hindu community living in the metropolis

KARACHI:

In yet another incident of vandalism against places of worship of the Hindu community in Pakistan, the statues of deities at Shri Mari Maata in Karachi’s Korangi area came under attack on Wednesday.

The Shri Mari Maata Mandir is located in "J" area within the limits of Korangi police station. After getting information, the police reached the area and inspected the temple and inquired about the incident.

The incident caused panic and fear among the Hindu community living in Karachi, particularly in Korangi area where police were deployed to avoid any untoward incident.

Sanjeev, a Hindu resident of the area, told The Express Tribune that six to eight individuals on motorcycles came into the area and attacked the temple. "We don't know who has attacked and why," he said, adding that the police were approached to lodge the case.

“Five to six unknown suspects entered the temple and escaped after vandalising it,” Korangi SHO Farooq Sanjrani confirmed. He added that the case was being registered against the unknown suspects who attacked the temple.

The sanctity of a Hindu temple was disrespected after unidentified ruffians vandalised the premises. The Shri Mari Maata Mandir in Korangi, Karachi was attacked on Wednesday causing fear to spread amongst the Hindu community. #etribune #news #korangi #Mandir pic.twitter.com/2KBZwU9AtQ

— The Express Tribune (@etribune) June 8, 2022

Temples belonging to the minority Hindu population in Pakistan are often the target of mob violence. In October, a historical temple located at the bank of the Indus River in Kotri was allegedly desecrated by unidentified people.

Law enforcement agencies came to the scene soon after the news of the incident went viral on social media. An FIR of the incident was lodged at the Kotri police station against the unknown miscreants.

Local residents told The Express Tribune that an unidentified person entered the temple premises and vandalised the statues of their deities after midnight.

Read more: Mob vandalises Hindu temple after boy granted bail

In August, dozens of people reportedly vandalised a Hindu temple in the town of Bhong and blocked the Sukkur-Multan Motorway after an eight-year-old Hindu boy, who allegedly urinated in a local seminary, was granted bail by a local court.

The boy, Bhavish Kumar Meghwar, had accidentally entered a seminary in Bhong on July 24. Local cleric Hafiz Mohammad Ibrahim berated the eight-year-old boy and reportedly, Meghwar urinated out of fear of the cleric’s anger.

The boy then ran away and hid before the cleric could catch him.

The next day, the cleric went to Bhong’s police station and registered an FIR against the boy. Since the boy was only eight, the FIR was lodged against an unknown person. The police presented Meghwar in court a few days later, where he was granted bail.

Following the court’s decision, a mob of young men gathered and vandalised the Shree Ganesh Hindu temple in the town.