LAHORE, March 14: The Sikh period marble pavilion at Hazoori Bagh was the latest, not the first victim of state-sponsored vandalism. Once again the Punjab government was involved.

The Punjab government has to its (dis)credit the ravaging of a number of historic buildings including those included by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization in its list of world heritage structures.

The biggest state event involving use of a heritage monument was the Organization of Islamic Conference summit in 1974 when the Lahore Fort became the venue of a state banquet.

The first time a monument was ravaged was in 1990 when former prime minister Nawaz Sharif hosted a dinner for Aga Khan at the same venue. Besides other damage, marble lattices of the Shish Mahal were pierced by iron rods to erect a shamiana for the reception. Some of these rods were driven so hard that pulling them out was considered more dangerous for the fragile structure than leaving them in place where they have remained to this day.

The year 1998 was easily the worst for the monuments in Pakistan. Three world heritage buildings fell victim that year to vandalism by one government agency or another. A fourth, also nominated by Pakistan for inclusion in the list, was also damaged.

The 17th century hydraulic system of the Shalamar Gardens was demolished. The general bus stand was shifted to the proximity of the Lahore Fort. This added to pollution, endangering the monument’s 1,400-foot pictured wall, fresco paintings, stucco tracery and marble structures.

In another ugly incident, a part of the northern wall of Jahangir’s Tomb was demolished to install a VIP gate. Sadly, the project architect lost no time to produce “historic evidence” of the existence of a gate.

Also during the year, the construction of a stadium began on a site near Taxila having 1200 BC ruins. The stadium was proposed by Chaudhry Nisar Ahmad, then a federal minister. The prime minister allowed construction on the Bhir Mound, the only unexcavated cultural mound whose archaeological digging had been proposed ahead of the stadium plan.

These incidents drew worldwide resentment and the Unesco declared the Lahore Fort, the Shalamar Gardens and Taxila as “endangered” heritage.