Pakistani Hindus feel under attack
In this Oct 4, 2012 photo, Ragu Lal, a member of the Pakistani Hindu community shows remains of a worship idol smashed by attackers, at a local temple in Karachi. — Photo by AP
KARACHI: They came after dusk and chanted into the night sky “Kill the Hindus, kill the children of the Hindus,” as they smashed religious icons, ripped golden bangles off women’s arms and flashed pistols. It wasn’t the first time that the Hindu temple on the outskirts of Pakistan’s largest city was attacked, and residents here fear it will not be the last.
“People don’t consider us as equal citizens. They beat us whenever they want,” said Mol Chand, one of the teenage boys gathered at the temple. “We have no place to worship now.”
It was the second time the Sri Krishna Ram temple has been attacked, and this time the mob didn’t even bother to disguise their faces. The small temple, surrounded by a stone wall, is a tiny religious outpost in a dusty, hardscrabble neighbourhood so far on the outskirts of the city that a sign on the main road wishes people leaving Karachi a good journey.
Local Muslim residents blamed people from a nearby ethnic Pashtun village for the attack, which took place in late September on the Day of Love for the Prophet, a national holiday declared by the government in response to an anti-Islam film made in the US. No one was seriously injured in the attack.
It was the latest in a rising tide of violence and discrimination against Hindus in this 95 per cent Muslim country, where religious extremism is growing. Pakistan’s Hindu community says it faces forced conversions of Hindu girls to Islam, a lack of legal recognition for their marriages, discrimination in services and physical abuse when they venture into the streets.
The story of the Hindu population in Pakistan is one of long decline. During partition in 1947, the violent separation of Pakistan and India into separate countries, hundreds of thousands of Hindus opted to migrate to India where Hinduism is the dominant religion. Those that remained and their descendants now make up a tiny fraction of Pakistan’s estimated 190 million citizens, and are mostly concentrated in Sindh province in the southern part of the country.
Signs of their former stature abound in Karachi, the capital of Sindh. At the 150-year-old Swami Narayan Temple along one of the city’s main roads, thousands of Hindus gather during the year to celebrate major religious holidays. Hindus at the 200-year-old Laxmi Narain Temple scatter the ashes of their cremated loved ones in the waters of an inlet from the Arabian Ocean.
But there are also signs of how far the community has fallen. Residents in a city hungry for land have begun to build over Hindu cemeteries, the community’s leaders say. Hindus helped build Karachi’s port decades ago, but none work there now.
Estimates of the size of the Hindu population in Pakistan are all over the map — from 2.5 million or 10 million in Sindh province alone to seven million across the country — a reflection of the fact that the country hasn’t had a census since 1998.
It isn’t just Hindus who are facing problems. Other minorities like Christians, the mystical Muslim branch of Sufis and the Ahmedi community have found themselves under attack in Pakistan, where the rise of religious fundamentalists has sometimes unleashed a violent opposition against those who don’t follow their strict religious tenets.
The discrimination has prompted some Hindus to leave for India, activists warn, though the extent is not known. Around 3,000 Hindus left this year, part of a migration that began four years ago, sparked by discrimination and a general rise in crime in Sindh, said DM Maharaj, who heads an organisation to help Hindus called Pakistan Hindu Sabha.
He said he recently talked to a group of Hindus preparing to move to India from rural Sindh, complaining that they can’t eat in Muslim restaurants or that Muslim officials turned them down for farming loans. Even during recent floods, they said Muslims did not want them staying in the same refugee camps.
Other Hindu figures such as provincial assembly member Pitamber Sewami deny there’s a migration at all, in a reflection of how sensitive the issue is. Earlier this year, there were a string of reports in Pakistani media about Hindus leaving the country, sparking a flurry of promises by Pakistani officials to investigate.
In India, a Home office official said the Indian government noticed an upward trend of people coming from Pakistan but called reports of Pakistanis fleeing to India “exaggerated”. He said he does not have exact figures on how many Pakistani Hindus have stayed in India after entering the country on tourist visas. The official spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the topic.
There’s more of a consensus of the seriousness of the problem of forced conversion of Hindus.
Zohra Yusuf, the president of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan says the pattern goes like this: A Hindu girl goes missing and then resurfaces days or weeks later married to a Muslim boy. During court hearings to determine whether the conversion was voluntary, students from nearby Islamic schools called madrassahs often flood the room, trying to intimidate the judges by chanting demands that the conversion be confirmed.
Maharaj says he’s tried to intervene in roughly 100 cases of forced conversions but has only succeeded in returning a girl safely back to her family once. If a girl decides to renounce Islam and return to Hinduism, she could be signing a death warrant for herself and her family even if her conversion was forced.
The Hindu community has also been hurt by a lack of unity within its ranks. Hindu society within Pakistan and elsewhere has historically been divided by caste, a system of social stratification in which the lower castes are often seen as inferior. Members of the lower castes in Pakistan say it wasn’t until two girls from a high-caste family were forcibly converted this year that high-caste Hindus took the issue seriously, although it’s been happening for years.
“We always fight our war ourselves,” said Bholoo Devjee, a Hindu activist from Karachi, speaking about the lower castes.
In recent months the government has begun to take the concerns of the Hindu community more seriously. In Sindh province, legislators proposed a law to prevent forced conversions in part by implementing a waiting period before a marriage between a Hindu and a Muslim can go forward, and there’s discussion about proposing such a law on the national level as well.
In the case of the Sri Krishna Ram temple, law enforcement authorities opened a blasphemy case against the people who rampaged through the building. But residents here are skeptical that these developments signify any long-term improvement in their plight. Weeks after the incident no arrests have been made, and the Hindus complain that no high-ranking Hindu officials have come to visit them or help them get compensation.
Sunda Maharaj, the spiritual leader at the temple, which was first attacked in January 2011, said he and the other residents do not want to move to India. “We are Pakistani,” he said.
But he would like more help from the government, specifically a checkpoint to stop people from getting close to the temple and money for the Hindus to buy weapons.
“Next time anyone comes we can kill them or die defending our temple,” he said.
what better to expect from people whose forefathers were violently converted
No Indian or Pakistani qualifies to criticize human rights in other countries. Both countries are worst offender of human rights.
It is very unfortunate and am saddened by the plight of Hindus and other non muslim communities made to bear the brunt by the majority Muslims of Pakistan.Why dont the perpetrators realise that Islam never discriminated other religions and is tolerant and respects other faiths. I feel sorry and I sympathise all those who are made to suffer. We in India do not treat the way the minorities are treated in Pakistan. We are secular and can find all religious communities holding positions in all walks of life vis ministries,forces,theatres,businesses etc etc. Please educate your fundamentalists and advise them to treat all human beings the same including your own women folks. and donot forget your own Mallala who is recovering in UK. Advise all To watch the documentary of her brodcasted courtesy BBC. May her dream come true and wish speedy recovery.
Mohandas from India
the govt should be interested about this , it is bad, they should do some thing, it a question of law and order , it can spread to other side by countries too due to communal feelings ,if not handled in time , so pakistan is requested to handle in time
Except few incidents in our country , No muslim is ill-treated. Govt. always woos them with all sops.
It feels sad
. People should not do such things . Sets a bad precedent for Pakistan & its people .Pakistan seems to be in a continuous state of moral decline .It disheartens me as I have always seen Indians/ Pakistanis /Nepalis/Bangladeshis/Bhutanese/Sri Lankans to be ethnic brothers and sisters . Offcourse , We people may not be exactly same to same as is the case within our own countries but still have far more in common with each other (linguistically , anthropologically , historically)than with the rest of world (which I see as the real foreigners) . Such a pity that at the same time , we hate each other (and the religions of others) so badly.
What these trouble creators are trying to do is to create a backlash against the muslims in India.Unfortunately for them it is not working whole scale.If India and it’s people can prevent it, I see no reason why you people and your government cannot do the same.Imagine if 200 million muslims are forced into Pakistan.Your nation will collapse.Of course this is just a supposition.No bad intentions meant.
When a non-Muslim girl falls in love with Muslim boy , she is appreciated and wedded ,on the other hand when a non-Muslim boy converts to Islam by falling in love with Muslim girl in most cases he is not appreciated and even killed in most cases, why this double standard?If you want to serve religion then tolerate do not play with others rights.
What happens if a non muslim guy fall in love with a Muslim girl and do not want to convert to Islam or girl get converted to his religion.
Go contact Malala, she is modern, see what happens.
And what happens if a muslim girl fall in love with a non-muslim and denounces her religion and convert to non-islamic religion?
Once you have seen the knowledge and light, darkess and ignorance has no appeal.
Being a Human first then a Muslim, it pains me and hurts me to see people being persecuted due to their faiths and beliefs. The silent majority of the world and in particular the Pakistani silent majority needs raisining their voice against such attrocities committed in the name of religon. No religion or faith tells you to harm fellow human beings due to their beliefs, faiths and religion.
Ejaz you are the first Muslim I have heard saying “Be a Human first then a Muslim” . If every person on this planet regardless of his/her belief starts thinking this way the world will definitely be a more peaceful place.
Thank You for speaking out.
stop fooling yourself,there is nothing called silent majority in Pakistan.if at all there is anything which denotes your idea is a mute and scattered few who are sitting on the wall ,eager to change lanes at the fist hail of bullets…majority in Pakistan consist of People like Mumtaz Qadri…
Hindus are protected and are actually saved by the Pakistani population from a definite hellfire, if they revert back to the only true religion of the world. So, it is a humane gesture by the ture belivers for their own good. We just need to see it in right perspective, other than the psedo secular prism.
One more question, So People in Non Muslim majority country, should they do the same with Muslims population . Force them to convert to their religion.
Pakistanis seldom raise their voice against injustice to minorities in their own country. They have more sympathies for Rohingyas in Myanmar…. when this is pointed out, the reply often is:
1) Even muslims feel persecuted, so what do you expect us to do?
2) Islam is a religion of peace – one should not judge it through actions of some people.
All this may be true, but it is time to become a human being first and condemn what is wrong. When Malala can do it, why cant the rest of us in the subcontinent?
Malala was used by foreign agencies since she was 10years old. This is now old hat. Most everyone knows this truth.
Don’t let you emotions control you and be careful what you say as Muslim. Correct your Aqueeda and learn your Deen. You statement “Being a Human first then a Muslim” is not right “Being a Muslim first” will make you excellent human as long as you understand Islam but simply calling you self a Muslim without the knowledge you will always be confused.
what Ejaz has said needs to be reciprocated by all the muslims..
saythetruth – don’t tell him to correct his statements, instead you should be correcting yours… he is right in saying that everyone needs to be a human being first and a muslim, hindu, christian, jew later.. humanity is the best religion in the world… try this and you will see the world has grown to a much better place to live and let live… fundamentalism and extremism will take you nowhere..
things like these make me feel ashamed to be a pakistani.
Why ? What is slowly being reported in Pakistani “english” media today is what has been going on even before 1947 ! It was Jinnah who promised ‘Direct action day’ that led to the slaughter of 2 million men,women and children. It has never stopped since then. Muslims went on to become defense heads, presidents,cricket captains and wealthiest businessmen in the country to our east, where as here the majority of hindus who once dominated the business and culture in Lahore and Karachi have either dissappeared, killed, converted or just left to rot away and die.
Why are these incidents making you look down upon yourself as a Pakistani. these collateral damages happen almost everywhere around the world where Muslim mosques are the target of violence. people get burned alive in places like Gujarat, India because they were Muslims. Please check the facts next time you feel ashamed about your identity.
collateral damage….seriously… ???? gujrat was 12 yrs back and you are still harping on it… what about the daily massacres and violence being targeted on pakistani hindus.. you should be ashamed of yourself and your identity… whatever that is… ignoring the facts, giving petty excuses and the arrogance in all you is what is resulting in america bombing your motherland from all corners… so much for the collateral damage.. right.
Why should you be ashamed? Did they ask your permission to do this? or could you stop them? Being ashamed of yourself will not fix things, bravely denouncing and trying to stop these things will.
Manmohan Singh and LK Advani are true Pakistanis who came back to India.
Hindus of Lahore left, it went from being the cultural capital of North India, the capital of film making, to Basant banning, rioting city that it is today. It was as if the soul of Lahore disappeared after Partition, so much so that from being Film Hub, today it has to import movies from India for popular entertainment.
People think ancient and today’s India is colourful. That is because of the Hindu culture, all imbibing, vibrant culture of the people who follow Sanatana Dharma. What will happen if they leave India en masse? Answer: Pakistan.
Pakistan maybe geographically and historically linked with India; culturally, socio-politically it is not – it is linked with Arabia, Pakistan’s true ancestors.
” it is linked with Arabia, Pakistan’s true ancestors.” Arabs themselves have become much more sophisticated and they may not like this link up with Pakistanis
Hope you know what is indus valley.
North indians/Pakistanis are mix of Chinese, Mangoals, hans, Turks etc
The world was more brutal when our ancestors lived……
I think the Arabs may not agree to your last statement.
You misunderstand. Symbolically Pakistan severed ties with the tolerant, pluralistic culture of India. Lahore is an example of how an art loving city has to now import movies for its people.
Pakistan got Arabized. NFP talks a lot about it – about how Khuda Hafiz is now Allah Hafiz, how Ramzan is called Ramadan, how Basant is banned because its History is a Hindu one,etc.
Pakistani history books need corrections.. Arabians are not and were never true ancestors of Pakistanis..
Peddarowdy….90 % Pakistan’s true ancestors were Indo Aryan and rest of them are Turks and Mongols… and if you talk about culture you have same like Hindus… you are even getting married same like Hindu marriages not like Arabs you wear clothes like Indians.. but you always like to be Arabs…. which you can never..
attrocious.
Next time Pakistani’s should think twice before talking about the demolition of Babri Masjid…
So a few broken trinkets are equal to demolitation of Babri Masjid?
PakistanUSA…Belifes are beliefs u can never compare which has much more value than other..
@PakistanUSA. Yes
No. You are not rational.
Well, it is sad what is happening to hindus in pakistan. That does not justify what happened to babri masjid.
for what babri masjid was demolished through conspiracy of high caste hindus.this unknown small temple is not demolished.moreover goverment has taken haesh action.in india cases are still going on.no action.
Pakistan must be dismantled and placed under UN control and administratiom
sorry you are wrong no use to go to UN we should modernize our education system and include subjects teaching tolerance , basic human rights and respect of all humanity at lower classes
this is not the teaching of islam , these are the black sheeps present in all the communities , no religion in the world preach violence and killing of innocence ,
Tell that to the Taliban or the local Mullah. Then come back. They will quote a few verses from the Quran to prove you otherwise.
So true. The Mullah is always able to find a verse from the Quran to support his actions.
Yes, you are right, mullahs are same as bajrang dal.
Why don’t the ‘White’ sheep do something about it then???????????
I am sorry, but people like you have been offering apologetic reasonings for the behavior of muslims for centuries. This is not the first time. What about the Mughals who destroyed Hindu temples? What about Mehmood Ghaznavi, who raided their temples? What about the Turks who are accused of genocide by the Armenians for killing one million of them? The list goes on and on. Stop offering these lame excuses and stop glorifying Islam’s past where muslims were involved in looting and plundering. Start teaching your kids how to be humans first and start acknowledging attrocities of the past through fixing your history books taught in schools. This will be a start of a better civil society.
Sounds logical.
The problem is 90% in pakistanis are black sheeps.
“these are the black sheeps present in all the communities”
But the white sheeps do not object. The Law enforcing agencies have the dubious record of not looking at such matters at all. . Such persecution gets encouragement by neutrality of the society.. All other communities punishes their black sheeps .
There should be no room in the teachings to interpret it differently..
That is how Islam was spread in the sub-continent even if you wish you cannot change
Islam was spread in Subcontinent thru descendants of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) who had fled persecution at the hands of Ummayads (the forefathers of Taliban types). Prominent among them are Abdullah Shah Ghazi, Misri Shah, Lal Shahbaz Qalandar, and Khwaja Gharib Nawaz (Ajmer sharif).
Raja Dahar took stand for one of the descendants of the Prophet when Qasim invaded Sindh in search of the holy man.
Read history my friend.
yes it was spread with a book in one hand and sword in another.. way to go Md.
Harass them until they convert to Islam OR leave the land of pure for the pure. Well done Pakistani’s, there are not many to ‘finish off’, you are getting close. Your message of love and peace is loud and clear and I hope that your good work within Pakistan and around the world is being watched by the God you are doing it for.
please use ur real name, love and peace ? yeah the whole world knows Pak is a peaceful country. LOL growup and come out of your lala land before its too late.
Hate and extremism is a sure recipe for self destruction of a country. We are our own worst enemies.
Man Eaters.
Indian Muslims are not forced to convert any other religion but can be killing badly any time like Gujrat incident where thousands of Muslims killed… Good Democracy of India..
Have you ever heard of any Indian muslim fleeing to Pakistan fearing their lives in India? Please correct me.
Yes, many times. There are many Indian Muslims i know who reside now in Pakistan.Even after partition, many Muslim families migrated in late 60′s to Pakistan. Ever since partition, how Muslims in India have been treated we all know that. Even if they speak of their rights, people of India tell them to go back to Pakistan, and there generations have being mocked by Hindus of India who refer them as Pakistani or “Musla”.
Well said. Same is done to Christian. Actually worse. I know.
Yes. There were Indian Muslims, mainly from Bombays’s Ismaili community, who escaped to Pakistan between 1988 and 1991 after the Bombay riots. I personally know them. Not only that. Bahais from
Iran also escaped to Pakistan after the 1979 revolution. I have personally met them too.
I know one .. sania
You have used the word ‘anytime’. Please tell me when did Gujrat happen? More than 10 years ago. That is NOT anytime, that is isolated incident.
The Hindus, Shias, Ahmadi Muslims being attacked in yesterday, last week or this year in Pakistan. Get the difference?
A ‘Gujrat’ happen every year in India. Only when it cannot be hidden does the world come to know of it.
U think you could have had a better life,had u shifted to ur motherland ” Pakistan”
why don’t you move to pakistan???
Is it? How can someone hide it in today’s world, when the media is all over; even in peoples’ bed room and kitchen? Why din’t you post it in the net? just like you did it here? Stop this non-sense. I even doubt, if you are an Indian Muslim.
please leave India. Pakistan is the country for you.
That is a lousy thing to say. India is free country and media is always hungry for stories of persecution. Name one incident in Gujrat itself where the evil Modi resides, I dare you.
No Indian Muslim wants to migrate to Pakistan, but Hindus of Pakistan do want to come to India. That tells you how hollow your claim is.
Still muslims are running to pakistan…they feel better off in India
Then why to stay here. Go to pakistan.. your land of pure and join them. Can you think of that? Minorities in India enjoy more powers than the majority. If they are backward, it is just because they cling to their religion.
Which part of India do you leave and face this every year? Why don’t you go to Pakistan and be safe? Your attitude is a problem. Your belief (changing Indian to a Muslim state) is a problem. If you ready to integrate into the society after setting aside your faith as your personal, everything will be fine. I am too from a minority community in India. And I have heaps of Hindus as my friends as well as family friends. I don’t interfere their faith and they don’t in mine.
Go to Pakistan then…You will be safe there!!!!
Do you think you can hide such things in today’s media world ? May be you can hide such things in Pakistani villages. But, India and its villages are connected. First, stop comparing … India is secular and Pakistan is a muslim nation with no place for minorities. The difference is clear.
really quote some instances on what happened against muslims this year in India. why dont you migrate to Pakistan.
Dear You are free to go If u feel that you ll get a better life in Pakistan. If Muslims in India have not grown. Look at the successfull muslim personalites in India and look at the the love they have got from People. People of India never thought abt their religion. but everybody can not be of same status. Same applies for hindus as well in India.
There is one reason for Muslim’s backwardness in India when comapred to other religion people. They do not follow family planning . So they spend their income on 5-6 kids which will just provide them food and cloths . A person from other faith will have same income but only 1-2 kid. He can provide his kid a better education and can live a better life,
Correction Mr Ahmadis are not muslims according to constitution of Pakistan
No sir. They are not Muslims according to their belief system and the defination of Muslim in the Quran. Pakistan’s Constitution amendment was only an official formality to give them minority protection.
We all know that situation is not that bad in India as in Pakistan. But dont paint a rosy picture of Indian Muslims. Recently, in the span of three months three cases of rioting against muslim took place in different districts of Uttar Pradesh, where muslims were at the receiving end.
My point is India is the safest place for a liberal Muslim to live; and Muslims of South Asia are safest in India and have the greatest chance of success.
If you are a liberal Muslim there is no better place to stay in South Asia than India. Where else can you spot Shahrukh Khan and Saif Ali Khan come on TV and do ads for a Liquor brand and live to tell the tale?
FYI, I googled “Uttar Pradesh Muslim attack” got nothing.. Either its such a tiny incident or you are outright lying about it.
but why muslim got killed in gujarat,did you know the history,i am from gujarat,i will tell you,becuase more than 100 karsevak innocent hindu killed without any provocation & reason.since than( more than 10years) not a single communal violance incident happend in gujarat.
but why muslim got killed in gujarat,did you know the history,i am from gujarat,i will tell you,becuase more than 100 karsevak innocent hindu killed without any provocation & reason.since than( more than 10years) not a single communal violance incident happend in gujarat.
will u like to comments on direct action
Are you seriously drawing a parallel between the treatment of religious minorities in Pakistan and India? I would understand if you were an illiterate person, but for heaven’s sake man, you’re on the internet! Use it to educate yourself!
Thousands????????. Total 754 Muslim died and 258 hindu in Gujrat riots.Just think once what had started the riots.Burning of 59 Hindu alive in train in Godhra.
Dawn reported the jailing of a Minister who was found guilty in the Gujarat riots in 2002…
You say that Indian Muslims are not forced to convert …. duh… no one of any religion can ever be “forced” to convert. Religion is a matter of belief … beliefs can NEVER be “forced”
Christians did it to Jews and Muslims after the conquest of Spain by them. The converted Jews and Muslims were called ‘conversos’ and considered less pure than Christian..often tortured. Read history.
Sorry but many Hindus in India converted to Christanity but their churches were burnt and they were killed. Such news is kept hidden except in western and Christian press and can be easly verified.
What do you know about Gujrat riots, It was instantaneous reaction to a well planned Brutal killings of 56 hindu pilgrims by fanatic muslims.
I dont justify Gujrat riots where both hindus and muslims were killed in peaceful state like Gujrat. But my friend don’t blindly blame, see both sides of coin.
good good……now when you talk about babari maszid then it is tit for tat….jab tum khud he aise ho to kisi dusre pe ungli kyu uthate ho…….pahle apna ghar thik karo khud ka ghar sambhal nahi raha or chale hame nasihat dene…..aggar hindus ka matlab india hai to bhej kyu ni dete un hinduo ko india tum bhi aram se jiyo fir chahe mandir todo ya kuch or todo….tumhe dusro ke mazhab se he chid hai na to tum pakistan ke sare mandir tod do lekin hindu logo ko pareshan na karo hamare liye inasan ki kimat hai patthro se khade kiye hue dhancho ki ni…..GOD ko khus karne ke liye mandiro ki jaroorat nahi hai..bhagwan insan ke dil me hota hai mandir maszido me ni…
From the advent of Islamic invasion of India, how many Hindus were enslaved, robbed, converted, and disposed of land/property?
That’s a looong list!
Do we really know why the Hindus rioted in Ahmedabad? Was it just caused by a rumour as happens often in Pakistan? Or, was it for land, women, and wealth?
Wouldn’t you feel under attack? Can’t we compare this to America being the big bully?
When American bombs mosques, weddings, funerals, and school it is called killing alleged terrorists.
It is sad to hear that Hindus are illtreated in Pakistan. Pakistan Government should help them to leave pakistan to india . India should also encourage all unhappy muslims to leave India to pakistan. Let the people live in thier place of happiness without fear
haha what a joke? do u have enought capacity in pakistan to accomodate all the muslims of india. our population already exceeds 190 million and is increasing at a tremendous rates. more people consume more resources. and pakistanis are already fighting for resources.
Also Omair, don’t forget Mohajirs, who are still struggling for their rights. And then there are Shias, Ahmedias and Sufis who are being killed everyday.
That’s correct. Would you like to more than double your population? Are you in a position to handle it?
Remember: Percentage-wise, Muslims may form a small fraction (about 12%) of the Indian population, but numerically, India has more Muslims than Pakistan.
India is the best place for Muslims, if you don’t believe come and live here – only for a month. Why should any any Indian Muslim opt for Pakistan.
yusufkhan, good comment.
Precisely.
yusufkhan, check with hundreds of thousands of Muslims living in make-shift camps in Assam if they are happy in India. Their houses have been burnt and loved-one killed in the recent riots there.
The attack on the mandir is deplorable. Don’t try to cash in on it to malign Pakistan. This happens in India also.
Very much true…
what if they want to stay? Migration does not reslove happiness issues
India is not the land of the pure. It is the land of people who are happy living with other people without caring too much about their definition of god. India is the land of million + your definition of god. Asking people to come here or to leave on the basis of their religion goes against the idea of India.
Hear Hear !
The article is about Pakistani Hindus and not Indian Muslims so keep comments focused on topic. Anyway India should encourage Hindus in Pakistan to come back to India and be as succesful as Indian muslims are in India…. Zakir Hussain, shah rukh Khan, etc… millions to mention by name. Per capita India produces more scientist, engineers, doctors, Bureaucrats, writers of Islamic origin then most muslim countries.
Those professionals are Muslims who have to work twice as had to get there…inspite of all the cruelty and prejudice towards them. And they can be killed and maimed at any time as happens every day in India.
I believe, India hold more Muslims than in Pakistan
Throw in massacre or two for the new partition refugees, just for the fun of it! A little entertainment to liven up the misery!
Shame ..shame..shame…at least in India Muslims are not forced converted and their mosques are not ransacked or looted….
Then what was heppened in Gujrat, India in 2005?
And in 2002.
Do you know What is the population of Muslims in Gujarat?More than Punjab and Sindh
Not counting the one killed, burnt, maimed and buried alive with their families. Gujrat is a well hidden horror…
One or two incidents in India is definitely comparatively far better than daily torture of hundus in pakistan
You will always get incidents of anger – and it was anger in Gujarat, as it is in Burma.
But you will never get deliberate killings as seems to happen in Pakistan
You think a few broken pictures is the same as wholesale slaughter of Muslims in India.
2001, I think you are talking about. Yes there was a communal riot in Gujrat. The rest of India is ashamed it happened. No excuses, our law prosecuted everybody they could find evidence on, including the state’s chief minister’s right hand man. Foolproof evidence could not be collected on the CM himself though so he is free.
We wish Gujrat 2001 does not repeat itself. I really do.
anything in your memory between 2005 Gujarat-2012
anything in your memory between 1950-2005 Gujarat
Trying hard to think and list some?
I m sure you will try hard and list couple of incidents in last 65 years after independence. Every country has such incidents now and then when their is a lot of diversity.
However government and is people realize mistakes and take a tough stand and see to it that it never happens again.
When neither the govt or the citizens (some citizens! if you would like) realize their mistakes and dont make new laws and also implement them, such terror and horror will happen on a daily basis
Yes Mamirulamin, take a riot from 10 years ago, and keep parrotting it while cleansing your land of all minorities. That’s what you seem to be good at. While butchering each other, keep pointing at USA, Israel and India. You’re doing a good job.
Happens every day on lesser scale. Most Christians and Muslims live in fear in India.
gujrat ma jo huwa wskee to jach and pure investigation and
un papio ko to saja ve de rahi hai kanun
What’s happening with Afghans since 1979, thanks to your Zia-ul-Haq and ISI? What about Shias, Ahmedias and Sufis? Anyways Gujrat happened in 2002 and not 2005 as you say.
u all keep on talking about gujrat..in pakistan gujrat type incident happens daily..shame on u all guys who defend this dirty act with comment like this.trust me gujrati muslims are far safer then u pakistani citizens.
That was 2002 not 2005…and the culprits have been sentenced to long prison terms and Dawn reported it!
Gujarat is not a isolated incident.
DO you know what is Detroit Race Riot.
Riots between black whites in Detroit, Michigan, USA in June 20, 1943, which lasted for 3 days
Things do go out of control once i an while, when there is diversity.
But there are checks in Place that controls from not happening again at-least on daily basis.
Please dont give decade old Gujrat example to hide you today.
who burnt the hindu pilgrims in the train first
Hindus did.
What happened is Gujarat in 2002 was only once. It was started by Muslims who cruely burned the train heading for Hindu pilgrimage. It was always reaction in India against Muslims. The no. of Muslims killed in Gujarat is far less than no. of Hindus get killed in terrorist attacks in India. What about their lives? their cries? their sorrows?? Dont you think Hindus should also retaliate? We cant sit sulking watch your inhuman killings. Though more than 90% Hindus condemn Gujarat riots. They vote Narendra Modi only on the basis of development. And yeah, there are Muslim leaders as well in Narendra Modis party in Gujarat and they regularly win. Because they vote on development, not on religion.
A train full of Hindu pilgrims was passing by a muslim neighborhood and was set on fire by a Muslim mob. 56-60 Pilgrims were burnt alive.
The uneducated hindu population(similar to Taliban) reacted with violence.
The Govt failed to control this violence.
Nobody is hiding this …. The train burners and the rioters will be punished.
175 million Muslims in India are far happier and succesful than the 200 million Pakistani Muslims. In your heart of heart you wish you are an Indian than a Pakistani.. In the West a lot of Pakistani’s pretend to be Indians.
One off tussles at a time happen even in a family leave alone the country ..also know the facts before commenting..the Gujrat Incident you are quoting was instigated by one section and the other section retaliated..where as the incidents in Pakistan are always attack from majority section on minority section without any reason..just religious extremism ..you should be ashamed to support such acts by quoting some one off incidents..
Exactly Guru, they dont want to admit it, but just want to find excuses and reasons to cover up their sins.
have you lost yourself….dont you know that it happens once and never repeated again…wait and watch the muslim brothers of my country are as much happy as any other community in india….
How many times it happen in Gujrat and how many times in happen in Pakistan?
You are wrong. Muslims are not converted in India because there is a shortage of hindu temples in India to accommodate all the new converts and the existing hindus, not because Indians are kind people.
As for ransacking Mosques, Babri Masjid was ransacked 10 years back. During the next 10 years that story has been repeatedly mentioned in 329 articles and editorials. That makes the total no of Masjids ransacked 330 (1+329).
And you still have the gal to take a moral high ground. Shame.
Can someone forward this article to Mr. Javed Naqvi, DAWN’s correspondent in Delhi; India.
There ‘s another friend of ours. Aijaz Zaka Syed.
I second.
he can only speak for Muslims not for humanity…
While you are at it, please mail that to another bleeding heart leftist Arundati Roy !
To borrow some words from Aundhati Roy that she applied to herself: Jawed Naqvi is a columnist. He doesn’t work for India’s tourism industry. Just because most Indians can’t handle the truth about their country doesn’t mean he should lie too.
some day these people will stand up against the system of pakistan and become a terrorists… bcoz there is a limit of everything….
@Sharma @all those who rated it up
I am amazed.. you just justified terrorism. People who really work to improve the system in-spite of odds are unsung heroes who do it by grinding themselves little by little throughout their lives.
We can never improve lives by posting comments on net… and posted comment are individual’s views.. but sparkysingh.. its bitter truth everything has limit.. whenever it is crossed .. revolt happens against ATROCITY…
Now i can see pakistan is dying.. no law and order….There are no CIA , no RAW behind these incidents. only its citizen is killing their motherland…. aweful!!!
Raw is supplying amrs through Bolochistan and Afghan borders…Do the research before you speak…
thats what your politicians say to coverup and you blindly believe it. grow up..
Wouldnt it be easy for RAW to destabilize Punjab and sindh rather than going all the way to baloch
Pakistani Hindus have always been considered second class citizens.they have no equal opportunities,no fundamental rights and many of them work as bonded labourers to land owners.Forced conversions are not new but the enormous increase in them is disturbing.The kidnapping for ransom has increased many fold in this Government’s tenure.There is no safety for anybody but Hindu’s are thought inferior and easy target for everybody to make merry.it is sad and disgraceful state of affairs for the land of the pure.I wonder who would be next-Sindhi’s and Baluchi’s
You keep believing it if it make you comfortable. You said rightly, do some research of the matters yourselves first before preaching others.
Salam Faiz,
Be realistic, before u write
and what has that to do with torturing innocent Hindus in Pakistan?
What is so good about Pakistan that makes CIA/ RAW invest so much money to destabilize it.
May be there are secret gold uranium and oil reserves that other countries are eyeing on