Chief Justice of Pakistan Gulzar Ahmed took suo motu notice of the burning of a Hindu temple in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Karak.
The shrine of Hindu Saint Shri Paramhans Ji Maharaj, built before 1920, was set on fire by an aggressive mob in Pakistan's Khyber.
Member of National Assembly and patron-in-chief Pakistan Hindu Council Dr Ramesh Kumar called on the Chief Justice of Pakistan and discussed the issue regarding the burning of the shrine of the Hindu saint.
The court has also summoned a report from the chairman of the minority rights commission, inspector-general of police and chief secretary of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa regarding the incident by January 4.
During the meeting, Kumar briefed the CJP on the burning of the shrine of a Hindu saint by an angry mob in Karak district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The CJP also condemned the incident in the meeting with Kumar and showing showed grave concern over the tragic incident.
Read the Pakistan SC statement here:
Mob sets ablaze Hindu saint's shrine in KP's Karak
The shrine of a Hindu saint was vandalized by an aggressive mob in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. The incident took place in Teri area of Karak district. As reported by Dawn.com, a mob comprising "more than a thousand people", led by local elders of a religious party, launched the attack to remove the temple.
Disturbing visuals posted on social media showed a large number of protestors present at the site, bringing down the walls of the property with smoke and fire visible.
The shrine attacked for the second time
The locals also revealed that residents of the nearby villages had announced a protest demonstration with demands of removal of the Hindu shrine, adding that the police totally ignored it.
"The residents had issued a call for protest, but with an assurance that it would be a peaceful one. However, the cleric incited the crowd following which they proceeded to attack the shrine," said Irfanullah, District Police Officer Karak.
This is for the second time that the shrine has been attacked. It was demolished in 1997 and then rebuilt in 2015 as per the orders of the Supreme Court.
Pakistan's Federal Minister for Human Rights Shireen Mazari condemned the incident, calling on the provincial government to ensure the culprits are brought to justice.
"Strongly condemn the burning of a Hindu temple by a mob in Karak, Khyber Pukhtunkhwa. KP government must ensure (the) culprits (are) brought to justice. We as a government have a responsibility to ensure safety and security of all our citizens and their places of worship," she added.
