Hindu Idols Vandalised In Karachi, Minority Community Raises Alarm

Karachi: Shri Mari Mata Temple, located in Korangi area of Karachi, was attacked, and the idols of deities were badly damaged. The incident has created a wave of fear and anger in the local Hindu community. This week, a minority rights organization also expressed serious concern over the poor condition of Karachi's historic Ramchandra Temple and the alleged encroachment on it, calling it a 'national shame'.

Were the idols really vandalized?

The attackers damaged the Hanuman ji idol badly, which was kept in the temple and also destroyed other religious objects related to worship. The temple was under construction, so the priest had brought the idols to his home. The miscreants destroyed the temple as well as the idols kept in the priest's house and attacked the priest and ran away. Sanjeev, a local Hindu resident, said that six to eight people riding a motorcycle came to the area and attacked the temple.

Have such incidents happened before?

This targeting of Hindu temples in Karachi and across Pakistan is not a new thing. The temple was attacked despite being very close to the police station.  In 2019, religious texts and statues were burnt inside a Hindu temple in Sindh. In 2020 the temple was vandalized in Tharparkar district, in 2021 the temple was burnt in Rahim Yar Khan.  According to a written reply given in Parliament by the Indian government, 112 cases of violence against Hindus and other minorities were reported in Pakistan till October in 2024 alone. 

What steps did the administration take?

On getting information about the case, the police visited the temple and gathered information, but no arrests have been made yet. HRCP has noted that in such cases the police either do not take action or shy away from taking action against radicals. Serious allegations of inaction have also been made against the Evacuee Trust Property Board, which is responsible for the maintenance of minority properties. 

Is this incident related to another community too?

Not even Hindus but Christian, Sikh, Shia, and Ahmadiyya communities in Pakistan also  face widespread persecution including mob violence, lynching, forced conversions, fabricated blasphemy charges and destruction of places of worship. 

Is there pressure at the international level?

UN human rights experts have talked to Pakistani government to take strict actions against extrajudicial killings, arbitrary arrests and attacks on places of worship against religious minorities. The US Commission on International Religious Freedom has even called Pakistan's blasphemy laws "a weapon of ethnic cleansing" and has repeatedly recommended declaring Pakistan a country of particular concern. Now it remains to be seen whether despite international pressure, Pakistan takes any meaningful step towards ensuring the security of its minorities or not.