Pakistan on December 29 announced that it has set up a first-ever body of Hindu leaders to take care of the minority community's temples in the Muslim-majority country.
The Ministry of Religious Affairs constituted the Pakistan Hindu Mandir Management Committee on the pattern of the already working Pakistan Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee.
According to an official statement, the inaugural meeting of the Pakistan Hindu Temple Management Committee was chaired by Minister for Religious Affairs Pir Noor-ul-Haq Qadri.
Evacuee Trust Property Board (ETPB) Chairman Asif Hashmi briefed the meeting on the matters. The ETPB is a statutory board that manages religious properties and shrines of Hindus and Sikhs who had migrated to India following the partition.
"The committee will look after matters related to Hindu places of worship,” Mr. Qadri said.
The committee comprising Dewan Chand Chawla, Haroon Sarab Dayal, Mohandas, Naranjan Kumar, Megha Arora, Amit Shadani, Ashok Kumar, Versi Mill Dewani and Amar Nath Randhawa will be headed by Krishna Sharma.
"Pakistan has created history by constituting the committee on the demand of the Hindu community,” Mr. Sharma said.
Mr. Qadri said that the problems of non-Muslim population of Pakistan are being solved on priority basis and the formation of the committee will be instrumental in resolving the issues of the Pakistani Hindu community.
The minister went on to say that despite religious and cultural diversity, tolerance and acceptance of each other is humanity, adding that evil elements want confrontation in Pakistan on the basis of religion, sect and linguistics.
“The new committee will act as a bridge between the non-Muslim population and the State,” he said.
He said that according to the vision of Prime Minister Imran Khan, efforts were being made for the welfare of the non-Muslim population.
Hindus form the biggest minority community in Pakistan.
According to official estimates, 75 lakh Hindus live in the country.
The majority of Pakistan's Hindu population is settled in Sindh province where they share culture, traditions and language with Muslim residents. They often complain of harassment by the extremists.
