The nine feet tall statue of Maharaja Ranjit Singh at the Lahore Fort was vandalized for a third time by workers of a Pakistani political party on Tuesday. As per a Twitter user who shared the video of the vandalism, the statue was pulled down by some Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (an Islamist political party) workers.
https://twitter.com/AU_Qasmi/status/1427516195331354707?ref_src=twsrc%5EtfwThe TLP workers first broke the arm of the statue and then dislodged it completely. As per a Hindustan Times report, the two workers entered the fort as a disabled person and his helper. The man who pretended to have a leg disability hit the statue with the rod he was carrying.
Reportedly, the TLP worker also chanted slogans against the former ruler of Punjab. The police informed that the attackers were of the view that it’s against Islam to erect a statue of a Sikh ruler in a Muslim country.
This is not the first time, however, the statue was attacked since it was unveiled in June 2019. The nine feet tall statue, made of bronze, showing the regal Sikh emperor sitting on a horse, sword in hand was desecrated by a teenager who broke the arm of the statue with the intention to destroy it.
Zeeshan, the miscreant then had reportedly justified his act by saying, “he had committed atrocities against Muslims during his rule.”
Prior to this, a mob had attacked the statue just after a few days of its placing.
Who is Maharaja Ranjit Singh?
Popularly known as Sher-e-Punjab or “Lion of Punjab”, Maharaja Ranjit Singh was the first Maharaja of the Sikh Empire.
Ranjit Singh fought his first battle alongside his father at the tender age of 10. After his father died, he fought several wars to expel the Afghans in his teenage years and was proclaimed as the “Maharaja of Punjab” at 21 years of age.