KARAK: Police on Friday claimed to have apprehended the prime suspect allegedly involved in the vandalism of a Hindu temple in Karak district.
Addressing a press conference Inspector General of Police (IG) Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Sanaullah Abbasi said the accused arrested from the Karak district and was involved in gathering the public for the vandalism and inciting them to commit the act.
The police chief said 110 suspects have been arrested by the police for their alleged role in the incident. Abbasi said, “We will ensure complete security to minorities and their worship places no one will be allowed to take law in their hands.”
It is worth mentioning here the Samadhi (shrine) of a Hindu saint Shri Paramhans Ji Maharaj was burnt by an angry mob in Karak. The samadhi is considered sacred by the Hindu community. Chief Justice of Pakistan also took notice of the tragic incident and fixed it for hearing on January 5.
According to sources, several people led by some local elders of a religious party held a protest and demanded the removal of the Hindu place of worship, adding that after delivering speeches, they moved towards and attacked the shrine, which was built before 1920.
This was the second attack on the shrine; it was demolished in 1997 and rebuilt in 2015 on orders of the Supreme Court, sources informed. The mob that was chanting slogans set the shrine on fire before demolishing it as well as an under-construction house owned by a member of the Hindu community, sources added.
Accusing the police of having failed to protect the property of minorities sources said that local people of nearby villages announced a protest demonstration a few days earlier which was completely ignored by police.
Karak District Police Officer Irfanullah talking to the media said the residents had issued a call for protest, but with the guarantee that they would remain peaceful. However, a cleric incited the crowd following which they proceeded to attack the shrine.
The shrine’s keeper had secretly acquired a house next to the property the protesters were against its construction because they assumed the shrine was being expanded, the police officer added.
There are no Hindus in the area and it was the home of the single samadhi, he explained. Irfanullah said the mob destroyed the under-construction house due to which the shrine next to it also damaged.
There was a large number of protesters and police controlled the situation, he claimed, adding that a case of the incident had been registered but no one had been arrested so far. The police official also said legal action will be taken against all the people who took the law into their hands.
