THE part of the Thar desert that lies within Pakistan has long been a bastion of communal harmony in this country. Given there is near parity between the Hindu and Muslim populations living in the area, that peaceful coexistence has been an example for other Pakistanis to emulate. However, there have been indications for a while now that Thar’s benign social ethos is undergoing a change, a change that bodes ill for the future of those who call it home and one that may well have wider repercussions for the rest of the country. An investigative report about forced conversions of Hindus that appeared in this newspaper recently detailed how certain mullahs and feudals are exploiting poverty and class distinctions to put Thar’s Hindu community under unprecedented pressure.

Certainly, exploitation along these lines happens elsewhere as well, but in Thar, with its huge Hindu population, it assumes a different dimension, especially against the recent backdrop of the mushroom growth of seminaries in Umerkot and Tharparkar districts. The spread of the madressah culture has led to a wave of fundamentalism in which conversion to Islam, whether by force or otherwise, has become a means to an end. For one, the conversion of Hindu girls — many of them underage — and young women, is often used to ‘legitimise’ their kidnapping and rape. Cowed into submission, and afraid of rejection by their community if they return, they can do little else but say their conversion was voluntary. How else can one explain that young girls and women of marriageable age comprise the vast majority of such cases? Moreover, if they do convert willingly, why is it they never contact their families again? On the other hand, there is an active effort by certain elements to offer material inducement to impoverished Hindus to convert. Such assistance, including ration, livestock, proper housing, etc is calculated to appeal to a people who are not even able to meet their basic needs. Surely charity should be predicated on need rather than on faith, or upon a change of faith. It is heartening that most Muslims who live alongside Hindus in Thar as part of an integrated social milieu are equally disturbed by the changes they are witnessing in a land that has seen none of the religious conflict that much of Pakistan has been witness to. The state has a duty to protect the Hindu community and its right to live as Hindus.

Published in Dawn, July 20th, 2017