Pakistan Hindu Temple Demolished: A Hindu temple in Karachi, Pakistan, was demolished to make way for a shopping mall, causing tension within the Hindu community. The Hindu temple-Mari Mata located in Soldier Bazaar, Karachi was demolished by an unknown builder on Friday (July 14) night to make way for a shopping plaza.
According to sources, the land of the temple was sold to a shopping plaza promoter for Rs 7 crore. After this, on Friday midnight, bulldozers were fired at the temple in the presence of policemen. The trustees and NGOs associated with the temple have also not come forward to object to the vandalism. In June last year, idols of Hindi deities were vandalized in the Mari Mata temple.
Panic among members of the Hindu community
According to the report of the Express Tribune, this incident spread panic and fear among the members of the Hindu community living in Karachi. Sanjeev, a Hindu resident of Korangi area, told the newspaper that six to eight people on a motorcycle came there and attacked the temple. Temples have often been the target of mob violence in Pakistan.
Dozens of temples located on the banks of the Indus River in Kotri, Bhong city and the Sukkur-Multan motorway have been destroyed. According to official estimates, there are 7.5 million Hindus living in Pakistan. However, according to the community, there are more than 90 lakh Hindus living in the country. Most of them live in Sindh province and have often complained of harassment by extremists.
Demolished 150 years old temple
Ram Nath Mishra Maharaj, the priest of Karachi’s Shri Panchmukhi Hanuman Mandir, told Dawn that the Mari Mata temple was built 150 years ago. We have also heard stories about old treasures buried in its courtyard. It is spread over about 400 to 500 square yards and it was discussed for some time that land grabbers are eyeing it.
Meanwhile, a member of the Madrasi Hindu community said that he was being forced to vacate the house on behalf of two persons, Emraan Hashmi and Rekha alias Naagin Bai. There was also talk that the temple had been sold by the two nominees to another party for an amount of Rs 70 million and the buyer was looking to build a commercial building there.
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