No help for kidnapped minor Hindu girl forcibly converted to Islam by Pakistani cleric

By Rajesh Kumar (Islamabad) and Ramesh Jaipal (Rahimyar Khan)
Wednesday,May 26,2010

Pakistan : The deplorable plight of the Hindus in Pakistan has once again come to the fore with a shocking incident of a minor girl being kidnapped and forced to accept Islam by a leader of a madrassa.

Thirteen year old Radha was kidnapped in December 2009 and there has been no news about her whereabouts yet.

Radha's father, Mehnga Ram, said he has knocked on every door from the President to the Punjab Chief Minister and Chief Secretary, but there have been no attempt to recover his daughter, who is said to be in the custody of Abdul Jabbar , the head the Darul Aloom in Khanpur.

Even the police appears to be helping the madrassa leaders, as it has refused to register any First Information Report (FIR) in the case.

"Local police, including the former and current district police officers of Rahim Yar Khan, are supporting the people who abducted Radha and are neither registering a first information report (FIR) against the accused, nor are they taking any action to recover the girl from the custody of Abdul Jabbar and Naveed," said Mehnga Ram.

"We took local Hindu leaders and other respected people to the authorities in order to push them to lodge an FIR against Abdul Jabbar, but the officials sent us to then DCO Imtiaz Gul, who after listening to our story took our applications, but did nothing except delay the case and make false promises," he added.

The madrassa leaders had initially denied that Radha was in their captivity, but later admitted that she with them and did not want to meet her 'non-Muslim' relatives.

Human rights organisations had raised the issue on several fronts, but there has been little action concerning the case.

Ramesh Pal, a local human rights activist said he had attempted to pursue the case and had raised the issue at every possible platform, but no failed on all fronts.

"I personally met Abdul Jabbar, but he never entertained any of our requests. This is a clear case of forced conversion," The Daily Times quoted Pal, as saying.

When enquired about the issue, Member of the National Assembly Dr Araish Kumar, assured that action would be taken and that he would personally discuss the issue with Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif.

Parliamentary Secretary for Human Rights Tahir Khalil Sindhu said that he had received an application on the case and was already planning to take action against the culprits. (ANI)