Hindu teen shot dead in Pakistan’s Sindh province

A Hindu youth was killed and another seriously injured when they were shot by members of a mob following communal tensions in a town in Pakistan’s southern Sindh province on Wednesday.

The Hindus, both traders, were attacked in Ghotki district by a mob protesting the alleged desecration of the Quran a day earlier.

Dewan Kumar, 17, succumbed to his injuries while his friend Avinash was fighting for life, police said.

Witnesses said Kumar and Avinash were having tea at a stall in Mirpur Mathelo, the main town of Ghotki, when they were attacked.

Ghotki district was tense over allegations of the desecration of the holy book by a Hindu man, who was arrested on Tuesday. Leaders of the Hindu community have demanded protection for their lives and properties following the violence.

Most of Pakistan’s Hindu minority live in Sindh, and Ghotki has a sizeable population of the community. Sindh has traditionally been more peaceful than other provinces but the region has witnessed a spike in sectarian tensions and radicalisation that has coincided with the entry of groups such as the Jamaat-ud-Dawah.

The trouble started on Tuesday when some burnt pages of the Quran were found outside an old mosque near Daharki town, stirring anger.