Try temple vandals under anti-terror laws, government watchdog suggests

National Assembly’s standing committee on human rights meets to discuss plight of minorities.

KARACHI: Given the state of minorities in the country, the mood emerging from the echelons of power comes as a relief for many. The National Assembly’s standing committee on human rights has recommended the Sindh government register terrorism cases against anyone who attacks a minority place of worship.

This was among the many other suggestions made during the meeting presided over by the committee chairperson, Riaz Fatyana, at the Sindh Assembly’s committee room on Friday.

Recently, a church and a temple were ransacked by vandals protesting against an anti-Islam film. While the attacks drew widespread criticism, not much followed up on the ground.

Digital cameras linked to police stations must be installed around the places of worship so that vandals can be traced, the committee recommended to the provincial home and police departments.

While the police and Hindu representatives have called the conversion of Hindu girls a sensitive issue, they could not digest each other’s figures over the migration of Hindus to India. Proving his loyalty to the government, AIG Falak Khursheed said that every citizen in Pakistan reserves the right to live the way he wants and minorities, especially Hindus girls, are never pressured to accept Islam.

Following the case of Rinkle Kumari in Ghotki district, only three families had migrated to India, he said, adding that 102 people went to the neighbouring country for yatras (pilgrimages). Of the 27 cases of kidnapping of Hindus in Sindh, only seven were of girls who were all rescued. The other cases were ransom related, the AIG stated.

Reprimanding the AIG for “misguiding the committee by presenting wrong figures”, Hindu MNA Dr Araish Kumar from Buner, Khyber-Pakhunkhwa, claimed that in September around 12 cases of forced conversions were reported from Tando Allahyar alone. During the last three years, 7,000 Hindus have migrated to India, he added.

Over 100,000 Hindus from Sindh have migrated to India in the past 20 years, which is more than the number of Hindus who migrated at Partition, corroborated Pakistan Hindu Council’s Mangla Sharma.

There are no personal laws for Hindus in the country and their marriages have no legal status, she said, adding that the government avoids implementing the five per cent minority quota at government departments.

“Extortion and kidnapping of our men may be tolerated, but forcible conversion of our girls is alarming. We want the provincial assembly and parliament to make laws against this practice,” said Sharma. She also pointed out the case of Rama Singh Sodho, an MPA from Thar, who migrated to India with his family.

The Sindh additional home secretary, Mudassir Iqbal, drew the attention of the participants toward the government initiative to form district  committees, including Hindu community members and police officers, under the supervision of the deputy commissioners to look into the matter.

After long deliberations on forced conversions, the committee directed the home department to make amendments in the criminal procedure code and set up “safe houses”, unlike Darul Aman, where the allegedly kidnapped girl can be kept for about a month before she is taken to any court.

The committee also recommended establishing district-level special cells comprising police, home and Hindu officials to protect the rights of minorities. The law department was asked to prepare a draft on Hindu Personal Law with the input of community leaders.

Suggesting the appointment of minority representatives as Auqaf committee heads, the human rights watchdog recommend that all government departments appoint minority members on the 5% quota.

Concluding the session, Fatyana gave a three-month deadline to the home, law and other officials to set up a cell for minority protection and prepare initial drafts for legislation on their issues. “We will come here again to review your progress,” the chairperson added.

Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid’s MNA Dr Attiya Inayatullah, Sardar Ramesh Singh, the Pakistan Sikh Council chairperson, and officials of the law and home departments also shared their views on the subject.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 6^th, 2012.