KARACHI, March 25: A meeting of Hindu community representatives has expressed serious concern over the plight of the minority communities in Pakistan and demanded the implementation of the existing laws and enactment of more laws to ensure their protection against kidnapping, harassment, forced conversion and discrimination.

The meeting was organised by the Pakistan Hindu Council in the backdrop of “growing incidents of kidnapping and forced conversion of Hindu girls in the country”.

A resolution passed unanimously by over 500 community representatives from across the country at the meeting held here on Sunday called for specific and more stringent laws in this regard.

Referring to the recent events of some Hindu girls’ conversion and marriages with Muslims, the resolution noted that the attitude of the police and lower courts was unfavourable towards the complainants — the parents and relatives of the girls — alleging that the girls were not only produced in courts under pressure but also not handed over to their parents.

Similar was the case of several kidnapping for ransom cases involving Hindu community members, it said, adding that the Hindus felt insecure and wanted protection to their life, property and honour. If this was not ensured, a mass migration of the Hindus from the country would be inevitable, it warned.

The meeting strongly recommended that “once an FIR is lodged after the disappearance of a Hindu girl, the victim should be handed over to her parents immediately after her recovery; and she should be allowed to stay with them for a couple of months before a court of law records her statement. The matter should then be decided according to her will”.

It urged the community to launch a concerted struggle for its rights.

A committee formed at the meeting was entrusted with the task of organising gatherings at the divisional and district levels to mobilise the community and formulate a strategy to cope with the situation.

Lawmakers criticised

Earlier, speaking at the forum most of the representatives strongly criticised the lawmakers representing the Hindu community in the elected houses for “not properly taking up the issue with the authorities concerned”. “They are not the community’s true representatives; and many of them have got themselves elected on the reserved seats of the minorities on the basis of their wealth or connections with the political leaders,” one of the speakers remarked.

Some other speakers called for preparing a list of “forcibly converted and married (Hindu) girls” and suggested that the relatives and other community members should set up protest camps to keep the issue alive for the “rescue and recovery of the victims”.

PHC chief Dr Ramesh Vankwani pointed out that despite a Supreme Court order for the recovery of three missing Hindu girls, Asha was yet to be recovered. He urged all Hindu lawmakers to raise the issue in the elected houses.

He said the community was making efforts to get the subject of religion included in the syllabus so that Hindu children could study their religion in educational institutions. He observed that Hindu businessmen and traders were subjected to extortion, kidnapping for ransom and harassment and this had become a major issue that must be tackled on a priority basis. He recalled that some Hindus were killed in Chak a few months back but the culprits were not arrested yet despite their identification in the FIR.

Haresh Tulreja from Pano Aqil said the constitution envisaged equal rights for the minorities but they were being discriminated against in every field. Even the police would not provide security to the life and property of a Hindu citizen, he alleged.

Gobind Ram from Khipro demanded that the scheduled caste should be given an equal status by the community.

Dr Chandiram from Hyderabad urged community members to join political parties of their choice and seek their support as and when needed. He was of the view that the issue of recent conversion of Hindu girls was being highlighted only because the girls involved came from well-off families. In support of his claim, he referred to the kidnapping of 10 Hindu teachers in Thar, and complained nobody took up the issue with the authorities concerned. Most people even did not know about the incident, he moaned.

One of the speakers told the meeting that two Hindus — Ajeet Kumar and his sister Prigati Bai — were kidnapped three years back in Jacobabad and the boy was eventually recovered after Pir Pagara’s help was sought. While he returned home from Bharchundi Shareef, his sister still remained unaccounted for, he said.

S.L. Ahuja, Radha Bheel, Kalpana Devi, Jhamat Mal, Mahesh Kumar, Dr Ashok Kumar, Pirmila Panjwani and others also spoke.