On Wednesday, a slum which housed impoverished Hindu families he city of Bahawalpur in Punjab, Pakistan, was reportedly destroyed by the government. In a disturbing video that has now gone viral on social media, a bulldozer can be seen razing the homes of Hindus to the ground while the women and children beg for their shelter to be spared.
The demolition exercise was carried out under the watch of the Housing Minister Tariq Bashir Cheema. He is a member of the cabinet in Imran Khan’s government. Bashir was also accompanied by Shahid Khokhar who serves as the Principal Information Officer.
On 20th May, houses of #Christians and #Hindus were demolished in Bahawalpur, #Pakistan
— Voice of Pakistan Minority (@voice_minority) May 24, 2020
Minorities were beaten and harassed. The perpetrators are influential people who have govt. support.@Mukesh_Meghwar @Asma_Jahangir @AWGoraya @KenRoth @petervdalen pic.twitter.com/6GdCE5eiJR
Reportedly, few days ago the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan had slammed the government for failing to protect the religious minorities. Pakistan has subjected its minorities to abduction, torture, rape, and forced conversions from time to time. The rampant attack on minorities is a testimony to the abject failure in safeguarding their rights.
Forced Conversions in Pakistan
Earlier, in a video shared by a Pakistani lawyer and activist, Rahat Austin, on Twitter, a Hindu woman belonging to the Bheel tribe in Nasarpur village in Matiari in the Sindh province of Pakistan, could be seen putting up a strong resistance against forced conversion to Islam. Reportedly, a Hindu boy was abducted by the leader of Tablighi Jamaat, an Islamic Missionary Movement, in Sindh. Besides, houses belonging to Bheel Hindusbwere ransacked and vandalised. Their properties were illegally grabbed and forced to vacate their own houses.
