A VIDEO of a group of men vandalising a centuries-old statue of the Buddha in Mardan shows the extent to which intolerance and ignorance have permeated our society. Recently, four men were digging in the district’s Takht-i-Bahi area — a Unesco World Heritage Site containing relics from the Gandhara civilisation — when they came across a life-sized idol of the Buddha. The video shows the men taking a hammer and smashing the statue to pieces. The reason behind this savage act, according to initial reports, was the incitement from a local cleric. District police sprang into action when the video went viral on social media. They have arrested the four men who appear to have acted together to destroy the statue.

Not only is the incident a painful reminder of how respect for minority religious beliefs is shrinking in the country, it also shows an ugly side of Pakistan to the world. Buddhist tourists from many countries in recent years have travelled to Mardan to marvel at the artefacts in Takht-i-Bahi where archaeologists have dug up hundreds of relics over the years. That some people can so easily and mindlessly destroy a 1,700-year-old relic out of foolishness and abhorrence for faiths other than their own points to the failure of the local administration to educate the public about the significance of such artefacts. In the past, two Buddhist statues had been found in Sheikh Yousaf village of District Mardan when people were digging a grave — statues which were handed over to officials of the archaeological department. Unfortunately, when the latest statue was discovered, instead of informing officials, the men smashed it and even captured their vandalism on a phone camera. The mindset that allows such an act to take place and be documented is one born of intolerance and bigotry. The culprits must be punished, according to the law, and the administration should reflect on its failure to educate the public about the religious and historical significance of these relics.

Published in Dawn, July 21st, 2020