India on Wednesday condemned the reported demolition of a century-old Hindu temple in Pakistan’s Punjab and known as on the federal government in Islamabad to conduct an investigation into the incident and be sure that these accountable are held accountable.
This was the newest in a string of comparable incidents involving the shrines of Pakistan’s minority communities which were taken up by the Indian facet.
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“We now have famous with deep concern the disturbing stories of the destruction of a historic Hindu temple in village Siraj, Narowal, Pakistan. We unequivocally condemn this reprehensible act of vandalism in opposition to a century previous minority place of worship,” external affairs ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal stated in an announcement.
The obvious apathy of Pakistani authorities and the failure to guard the temple is alarming, Jaiswal stated. “Such incidents are a stark reminder of the persevering with vulnerability of minority communities and the egregious violations of their non secular freedoms and locations of worship in Pakistan,” he stated.
The Indian facet known as on the federal government of Pakistan to “conduct a immediate and clear investigation into this incident and be sure that these accountable are held absolutely accountable”.
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The Pakistan authorities should additionally take “speedy remedial measures to revive the desecrated temple and fulfill its main obligation to ensure the security, safety and well-being of all its minority residents and their cultural heritage”, Jaiswal stated.
What the MEA stated
Temple demolition kicks up row in Pakistan
The demolition of the temple in Narowal has sparked a row in Pakistan as properly, after a minority rights group alleged that the construction was intentionally demolished to facilitate the enlargement of an adjoining seminary, in accordance with a report by Pakistani information outlet The Daybreak. Nevertheless, the Evacuee Belief Property Board (ETPB) claimed that the temple collapsed attributable to heavy rainfall.
The temple was razed on August 21, following which the Pakistan Masiha Millat Celebration (PMMP), an outfit that works for minority rights, alleged {that a} group of individuals demolished the construction and eliminated its bricks, steel fittings from the dome and different materials from the location.
The PMMP additionally approached the authorities to hunt motion in opposition to these liable for the demolition. The group stated the temple was estimated to be over 125 years previous.
