Most Hindu temples in Pakistan in ruins, ancient worship places falling apart: Report
Pakistan's minority - especially Hindus which form the largest group - find that a vast number of their temples are in various stages of neglect and decay.
Gori ka mandir or Gori jo mandar (also Goris temple) in Nagar Parkar in Sindh province of Pakistan | Photo Credit: iStock Images
Key Highlights
- When Pakistan was carved out from undivided India, the non-Muslim minority that stayed behind was assured by Jinnah of tolerance and inclusion.
- Not only did the successors to Jinnah's legacy of power negate that, but they also took the sites of worship to ruin.
- Today the lakhs of Hindus still residing in Pakistan and their descendants live in a state of fear and reprisal.
A report prepared by a one-man commission (Dr Shoaib Suddle) and submitted to Pakistan's Supreme Court on February 5 paints a dismal picture of the state of temples and Hindu places of worship, reports a Dawn story. This one-man commission of Dr Shoaib Suddle was appointed by the Pakistani SC and had other members like Dr Ramesgh Vankwani, Saqib Jillani and the attorney general for Pakistan to support Dr Suddle's fact-finding efforts.
It notes that most revered sites of the minority Hindu community in Pakistan are in a poor condition and the authority responsible for their upkeep has failed to maintain them.
Sadly, among these sites are some ancient heritage temples considered holy by Hindus for several centuries, perhaps millennia.
(Katas Raj Temple )
The recent report submitted to the Pakistani SC highlights that the post-Partition body - the Evacuee Trust Property Board (ETPB) - responsible for the upkeep of the Hindu temples as the numbers of Hindus dwindled- has failed miserable failed to maintain most of the ancient holy sites.
The Pakistani Supreme Court had in its order dated 5 January asked the ETPB "to submit a detailed report of all temple, Gurudwaras, and other religious sites all over Pakistan which come under the ETPB purview.
According to the ETPB reply, it is managing only 13 temples out of the 365 assigned to it and it has left 65 of the temples to the Hindu command the rest 287 are exploited by land mafias who find it an easy-grab.
The ETPB argues in its defence that non-functional temples and gurdwaras are due to lack of Hindus and Sikhs in the area.
The One-Man Commission alleges that ETPB is only interested in occupying valuable properties of migrated community. It also alleges that the ETPB usurped Rs 38 million in the name of the renovation of the temple in Terri village of Khyber Pakhtunwa's Karak district. This temple was torched by members of the radical Jamiat Ulema e-Islam party (Fazal-ur Rehman group).
"It is indeed strange that even in this age of technology, the ETPB has yet to get the evacuee properties geo-tagged, the commission noted. Hindus form the biggest community in Pakistan.
(Hall and stone wall at Ruined Jaulian Buddhist monastery at Haripur Near Taxila in Pakistan)
Among the temples in Pakistan are:
- Shri Hinglaj Mata Mandir in Balochistan (whose annual Hinglaj Yatra is the largest Hindu pilgrimage in Pakistan, which is participated by more than 250,000 pilgrims)
- Shri Ramdev Pir temple (whose annual Ramdevpir mela in the temple is the second largest Hindu pilgrimage in Pakistan,
- Umarkot Shiv Mandir (famous for its annual Shivratri festival, which is one of the biggest religious festivals in Pakistan.
- Churrio Jabal Durga Mata Temple (famous for Shivratri celebrations which are attended by 200,000 pilgrims)
- Shri Param Hans Ji Mahaaraj mandir/samadhi at Terri in KPK
- Guru Balpuri Ashram in Thana Bulla Khan
Temples in Pakistan-Occupied-Kashmir:
- Shiv Temple at Barnala, Bhimber
- Banganga Temple at Khuiratta, Kotli
- Baba Balaji Temple at Ratta, Dadyal, Mirpur
- Raghunath Temple at Mangla Dam Lake, Mirpur
- Shivala Temple at Mangla Dam Lake, Mirpur
- Sita Ram Temple at Muzaffarabad,
- Sharada Peeth at Sharda, Neelum district in PoK
A promise not kept:
Despite the promise that was made by Pakistan's founder and its first Governor-General, Muhammad Ali Jinnah in 1947 when the country was carved out of undivided India, to the minorities in Pakistan - there has been no fulfilment of the word given by the highest authority.
“Work together in a spirit that every one of you, no matter to what community he belongs, no matter what relations he had with you in the past, no matter what is his colour, caste, or creed, is first, second, and last a citizen of this State with equal rights, privileges, and obligations, there will be no end to the progress you will make…”
These were the words of advice from Jinnah gave to the First Constituent Assembly of Pakistan on August 11th 1947. It was the promise why many people from non-Muslim minority communities in Pakistan chose not to leave this nascent young republic for India, hoping to be treated as equal citizens regardless of their faith, writes Omer Imran Malik in "The Digital Rights Monitor".
The Dawn cites the example Laki in Sindh province where the situation is a far cry from the past when the area was dotted with temples and monastic establishment.s. Zahida Rehman Jatt writes in the Dawn: "Earlier this year, I went to Laki, which is about 18 kilometres from Sehwan. Laki is famous for its natural streams, but once I got there, I also realised how important Hinduism has been to Sindh and how embedded the religion is with the geography of the region."
Jatti states that Laki used to be of special significance for worshippers of Shiva as well. French researcher Michel Boivin, in his book "Sindh Through History and Representations", notes that Laki “is one of the most important places of the Shivaite cult in Sindh and a stopover for pilgrims going on the journey to Hinglaj Mata temple to celebrate yatra (pilgrimage) in Balochistan.”
Zahida Rehman Jatt notes that sadly, today, there are only a handful of Shivalas or temples in Laki. Once majestic, they now wear a deserted look since there is no one to take care of them anymore.