Reconstruction of Hindu Temple Burned by Muslims

[Asia Economy Reporter Yujin Cho] The provincial government of Pakistan recently decided to rebuild a Hindu temple that was destroyed by a Muslim crowd, AFP news agency and local media reported on the 2nd.

Kamran Bangash, the Information Minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in northern Pakistan, stated the day before, "The Chief Minister has instructed the provincial government to reconstruct the damaged temple and its annex buildings using government funds."

Earlier, a Hindu temple in Karak district of Pakhtunkhwa province was vandalized and set on fire by over 1,500 local Muslim crowd on the 30th of last month.

According to the police, the crowd instigated the riot following the orders of a local Muslim cleric. The police launched an investigation and arrested about 45 people, including the Muslim cleric Maulana Mohammad Sharif, who triggered the incident.

Minister Bangash expressed regret over the damage, saying the reconstruction will begin as soon as possible and security forces will be deployed at the temple.

According to local media, the temple was built before 1920. After Pakistan gained independence from Britain in 1947 based on Islam, Hindus left the area, and after an arson incident similar to this one in 1997, local Muslims took over the site.

Subsequently, the Supreme Court of Pakistan ruled in 2015 to return the temple to the Hindus, and it was being restored as a Hindu temple.

In Pakistan, Muslims account for as much as 97% of the population, leading to frequent oppression of minority religions such as Hinduism and Christianity.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.