PAKISTAN: Hindu community was attacked and evicted on false charges of Blasphemy, one person killed by firing

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Gopinath Kumar <namastepakistan@gmail.com>
Date: Wed, Aug 25, 2010 at 9:01 AM
Subject: PAKISTAN: Hindu community was attacked and evicted on false charges of Blasphemy, one person killed by firing
To: publicmail@president.gov.pk


Dear President of Pakistan,

PAKISTAN: Hindu community was attacked and evicted on false charges of Blasphemy, one person killed by firing

Names of the victims:
1. Mr. Faqeero
2. Mr. Kirchand
3. Mr. Mukesh
4. Mr. Kishan
5. Mr. Prem
6. Mr. Heroo Ram Chand,

All are living in Bheemo Mal Megwar Para,Mir Wah Gorchani city, Mirpurkas district, Sindh province

7. Inhabitants belonging to the Hindu Community settled in Bheemo Mal Megwar Para, Mir Wah Gorchani city, Mirpurkas district, Sindh province

8. Mr. Mohammad Imran, died in exchange of firing, Mir Wah Gorchani city, Mirpurkas district, Sindh province

Names of alleged perpetrators:
1. Maulvi Mushtaq Naqshbandi, Head of Jamia Siddiqia Madressa and mosque, Mir Wah Gorchani city, Mirpurkas district, Sindh province
2 . Mr. Haq Nawaz, Official of Pakistan Rangers, Mirpurkhas district, Sindh province

Date of incident: 23 August 2010
Place of incident: Bheemo Mal Megwar Para, Mir Wah Gorchani city, Mirpurkas district, Sindh province

I am writing to voice my deep concern regarding the attack on the settlement of the Hindu community at Bheemo Mal Megwar Para, Mir Wah Gorchani city, Mirpurkas district,Sindh province, by Muslim extremists on the false charges of writing blasphemous slogans on and around the walls of close to the mosque. They burned the houses of the Hindus and looted their belongings. One Muslim man was killed during the firing from the extremist elements.

It is shocking for me that on the early hours of August 23, at around 2am Maulvi Mushtaq Ahmed Naqshbandi, a leader of the local mosque and seminary known as Jamia Siddiqia, announced through the loudspeakers of the local mosque that there were some wall chalking in which abusive words were written against the last prophet of Islam by the Hindus. He provoked that the Muslim people should come out from houses to teach the Hindu community a lesson. When some people asked about the prove that Hindus have written abusive language, the Maulvi said that a truck-driver informed him that when he was entering the area near the mosque he saw a young man was standing with the wall and after seeing driver he ran away towards the Hindu community, the Bhemo Mal Megwar. The driver saw the wall chalking and quickly informed this to Maulvi.

Maulvi also provoked the Muslim people to search the houses of the Hindus and find the young man whose hand must be stained with black ink. Around 50 persons under the leadership of Maulvi started searching each houses during which women were dragged by the hair out from the houses in their sleeping garments conditions, children were kicked to force them to leave the houses. There were 60 houses and it took three hours to search for the man suspected of the blasphemy but no such person was found in the community. When the situation deteriorated after the humiliation of Hindus and the threats to burn their houses a police party under district police officer of Mirpurkahs arrived and started controlling the mob of more than three hundred Muslims. The angry mob started pelting the police with stones shouting slogans to burn down the houses of Hindus. The mob then burned three houses and looted the belongings of the community.

In the meantime the loudspeakers of the mosque were continuously used to provoke the Muslims to attack the houses of Hindus of Bhemo Mal Megwar who might have provided shelter to the person who had written blasphemous writings on the walls around the mosque. The mob was swelling and going out of control so the Rangers were called to help the police in controlling the mob. As the Rangers came some miscreants used fire arms during which one Ranger, Mr. Haq Nawaz, received a bullet injury. The rangers and police used tear gas shell and baton charged the mob. On the demand of the Muslim leaders seven Hindus were arrested on the charges of Blasphemy. The arrested persons were Mr. Faqeero, Mr. Kirchand, Mr. Mukesh, Mr. Kishan, Mr. Prem and Mr. Heroo Ram Chand. One possible reason for their arrest is that they were the only persons available at that time as the Hindus fled the area to take shelter in other places. They also left all their belongings and animals that have been withou t water and fodder since then.

One young Muslim man, Mohammad Imran, was killed by gunfire. In the funeral prayers one particular person attended. He is Pir Aube Jan Sarhandi, from Sanghar city, Sindh, and is known in the area along the Indian border to convert Hindu women to Islam by abducting them. He openly claims that he has converted 2000 Hindus to Islam.

I am appalled as to how a leader of a mosque can order the people to search of each and every house for a person for writing the alleged blasphemous slogans. How the law was given over to the hands of an Imam of a mosque, is this the rule of law in the country? I am also concerned with the misuse of loudspeakers from the mosques and how they are frequently used against the religious minority groups.

According to the information I have received, it seems to me that the local administration is at the mercy of the extremist Muslim groups who use their influence against the religious minority groups in Sindh province. Many Hindu communities have already left their settlements because of the absence of rule of law in the interior of Sindh.

I urge you to take stern action against the persons responsible for attacking on the century-old settlements of the Hindu community. I also urge the authorities to stop the misuse of Blasphemy law without properly following the law. The misuse of loudspeakers from the mosques should be stopped. The government should help the displaced Hindu community for their rehabilitation in their own settlements. Maulvi Mushtaq should be arrested and prosecuted on the charges of misusing loudspeakers from the mosque and taking search of the each houses of the Hindu community illegally. The government should also provide compensation to the family of Mr. Mohammad Imran who was killed during the firing from the extremist elements.

Yours sincerely,
Gopinath Kumar
USA