Hinduism in Pakistan
Hinduism in Pakistan
Hinduism is the second largest religion in Pakistan after Islam, with 2.17% of the Pakistani population, or over 5.2 million Pakistanis, being Hindu. Pakistani Hindus are mainly concentrated in the eastern Sindh with the Umerkot District having the highest percentage of Hindu residents in the country at 54.7%, while Tharparkar District has the most Hindus in absolute numbers at around 810,000. Hin
"In Pakistan, 300 temples were destroyed. In Lahore a Minister of Pakistan personally supervised the pulling down of a temple with the help of bulldozers, and several Hindus were murdered. But the Government of India remained silent. No matter how much tyranny, how much injustice is heaped on Hindus anywhere in the world, the State of India is not bothered — this is the essence of Secularism in India."
"Invisible walls were also rising among communities, between neighbors, and even within families. The seeds of intolerance had been there at the outset of Pakistan’s creation, though they’d been kept mostly buried. Now, Zia was watering them generously, and the Saudis were adding fertilizer. Mehtab had grown up with Hindu neighbors; they visited each other and played together. Soon, some Sunni Pakistanis refused to even have a Hindu cook in their house, because they considered the food impure."
"We are not allowed to pray peacefully in the temple or celebrate Hindu festivals."
"It is our firm conviction that guaranteeing the protection of the life and property of Hindus and other minorities in Pakistan is the responsibility of the Government of India. To take a nice legalistic view about the matter that Hindus in Pakistan are Pakistani nationals would be dangerous and can only result in killings and reprisals in the two countries."
