SUKKUR: Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari late on Friday evening visited the SSD Dham Mandir, a Hindu temple attacked by a mob during recent riots in Ghotki.

He said he had come to the place to express solidarity with the Hindu brethren. He observed that the situation in occupied Kashmir was volatile and therefore our full focus was on that issue.

Speaking to members of the local Hindu community, Mr Bhutto-Zardari expressed his concern over the attack and sympathy with the community. He said he was sad over the incident in which the temple was ransacked by miscreants.

‘Conspiracy’ to undermine communal harmony in Sindh condemned

He noted that the incident took place at a time when we [leaderships of the country and political forces] were focussing on the Kashmir issue in the wake of Indian move to annex the occupied part of the disputed territory. He held out the assurance that the culprits of the mob attack would not be allowed to go unpunished.

He said that the PPP and its government in Sindh was with the Hindu community of Ghotki and seeing the matter of the ransacking of their temple with complete maturity.

Later, speaking to the media, the PPP chairman said that the mob attack on the temple was an attempt to disturb law and order in this province and earn a bad name to the country vis-a-vis communal harmony.

He said stern action should be taken against anyone involved in the attack on the temple irrespective of his political affiliation. He directed the Sindh government’s officials concerned to ensure compensation against the losses caused to the temple.

In reply to a question, Mr Bhutto-Zardari criticised the federal government for having “hatched a conspiracy to defame Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah”. He claimed that a character assassination campaign was being run against him by fabricating cases. He expressed his confidence that such cases were doomed to be dismissed by courts.

The PPP chairman also observed that attempts were being made by the “puppet” government at the Centre to dislodge the Sindh government on different pretexts so that a similar “puppet” government could be installed in the province.

“But the people of Sindh would not let them occupy Sindh,” he said.

Regarding Prime Minister Imran Khan’s address in the UN General Assembly, Mr Bhutto-Zardari said “unfortunately the prime minister could not present Pakistan’s Kashmir case properly”.

He said: “We anticipated a revolution emerging from his much-orchestrated visit to New York and address to the UN General Assembly”. It would have been better if the PM had undertaken the visit a little bit prepared, he remarked.

He said the people of Pakistan had always been with the Kashmiri brethren and would remain so in future.

Mr Bhutto-Zardari also recalled that during the visit, the PM accused state institutions of having helped the Al Qaeda leadership but strangely enough he had not withdrawn such statement as yet.

The PPP chairman repeated his call for Imran Khan to step down saying that his removal was essentially required to see the problems being faced by the country resolved. “He will have to go home,” he added.

Later, Mr Bhutto-Zardari visited the local Jamia Masjid which also came under attack during the riots. He condemned the attack on the mosque in strong words.

“When he could not provide justice to his countrymen, then how could he do that for the Kashmiri people?” he argued.

He was accompanying Sohail Ahmed Sial, Jam Ikramullah Dharejo, MNA Sardar Mohammad Bux Mahar, Bangal Khan Mahar, Aajiz Dhamrah and other party leaders in his Ghotki visit.

Published in Dawn, September 29th, 2019