Pakistan's Sindh CM wishes 'Happy Holi' on Diwali, deletes mindless tweet post criticism

In another embarrassment for Pakistan, Chief Minister of Sindh, Syed Murad Ali Shah wished the Hindu population in his province a 'Happy Holi' on the occasion of Diwali. In a now-deleted post, the Chief Minister's official Twitter handle 'CM House Sindh' shared a Holi message on Thursday posting a picture of Murad Ali Shah with colours of Holi and oddly a crane, photoshopped in the background. A screenshot of the tweet was shared by Pakistani journalist Murtaza Solangi, who captured the blunder before it was taken down.

The journalist condemned the Pakistan politician's ignorance and cited how Sindh was a region where Hindus were in an overwhelming majority. Solangi remarked that the fact that the staff of the CM did not know the difference between Diwali and Holi showed the 'sad state of affairs.' It is important to mention that there are over 4.18 million Hindus in Sindh constituting 8.73% of its population, as per a 2017 census.

"Sindh has the largest number of Hindu population in Pakistan with areas where Hindus are in overwhelming majority. One can only be sad at the state of affairs if the staff at the CM House Sindh doesn’t know the difference between Diwali and Holi. Sad indeed," tweeted Murtaza Solangi.

While the blunder has been deleted, the CM House of Sindh has neither issued a clarification or an apology nor has it shared a message with the correct wishes. It is important to mention that Sindh not only has the largest Hindu population in Pakistan but also harbours some ancient temples like Ramapir temple and Umarkot Shiv mandir. The Minister who committed the blunder belongs to Pakistan People's Party (PPP). Earlier today, PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto had also extended Diwali greetings to the Hindu community. 

"We need to understand the message of Diwali, which teaches us that no matter how powerful evil is, its defeat at the hands of unwavering determination and constant struggle is inevitable,” he said in a statement. The PPP chairman further stated the philosophy of his party is also "to fight against darkness, injustices and inequality in the country."