Violent Pakistan mob razes Hindu temple in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa; shocking visuals on camera

A Hindu temple was vandalised by an angry mob in northwest Pakistan on Wednesday, news agency PTI reported quoting police officials as saying. The incident took place in Terri village in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Karak district, District Police Officer Irfan Marwat told reporters. According to Marwat, protesting the expansion work of the temple, the mob demolished the newly constructed work alongside the old structure. An FIR has been registered but no arrests have been made so far in the incident.

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However, according to Pakistan's The Daily Times, a rally was organised by Jamiat Ulema-e Islam-Fazl (JUI-F), a Sunni Deobandi political party nearby in the country where speakers delivered fiery speeches after which the charged crowd stormed the temple, set it ablaze and razed it to the ground. It quoted JUI-F KP Amir Maulana Ataur Rahman who said his party has nothing to do with the burning down of the temple as it happened after their party's rally.

Pakistan's federal Parliamentary Secretary for Human Rights Lal Chand Malhi strongly condemned the vandalism of the temple by "some anti-social elements". Noting that some groups are active in carrying out such anti-social activities to defame Pakistan, Malhi said the government will not tolerate such incidents. Malhi said he has asked the district administration to file an FIR in the case and take legal action against the culprits.

The incident in the town of Karak drew condemnation from Pakistan's minister for human rights, Shireen Mazari. Mazari on Wednesday took to Twitter to condemn the burning of the temple and urged law enforcement officials to ensure the arrest of those involved.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Mahmood Khan termed the attack on the temple as "an unfortunate incident." He has sought an early report from the police on the matter and ordered the immediate arrest of those involved in the incident. Khan vowed that his government will protect worship places from such incidents.

Leader of Hindu Community Peshawar Haroon Sarab Diyal said that a samadhi of a Hindu religious leader exists at the temple site and Hindu families from across the country do visit the samadhi on every Thursday. He said the incident has hurt the sentiments of the Hindu community and the Islamic Ideology Council should take note of it. Diyal said Prime Minister Imran Khan talks about the promotion of religious tourism in Pakistan but minority worship places were not safe in his own country.

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The act against the Hindu minority community is widely condemned by human rights activists based in Pakistan and other parts of the world.

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(With agency inputs)