Pak mob ransacks Hindu temples, school, houses

An unruly Pakistani mob ransacked three temples, a school and multiple houses belonging to the Hindu community after a principal was accused of blasphemy by a student in Sindh’s Ghotki district.

The violence took place after a First Information Report (FIR) was registered against the principal of Sindh Public School which accused him of committing blasphemy on Sunday. The case was filed under Article 295-C and accused the principal of committing blasphemy on the school’s premises.

Videos showing a frenzied mob venting their anger on a Hindu temple and the Sindh Public School in reaction to the alleged incident of blasphemy were making rounds on social media.

According to reports, houses of Hindu families have also been reportedly attacked, with the mob

■ Videos showed a frenzied mob venting their anger on a Hindu temple and the Sindh Public School in reaction to the alleged incident of blasphemy

blocking off roads in the area.

Residents of the area demanded the police to arrest the principal, and issued a call for a shutterdown strike and took to the streets in protest.

Large contingents of law enforcement agencies and paramilitary forces, including Sindh Rangers, were deployed to prevent any untoward incident.

Speaking to a local media outlet, Pakistan Tehrik-eInsaf (PTI)lawmaker Ramesh Kumar Vankwani said Hyderabad Deputy Inspector General Naeem Shaikh will head a probe into these allegations.

Speaking about the safety of the school principal,

■ Large contingents of law enforcement agencies, paramilitary forces, including Sindh Rangers, were deployed to prevent any untoward incident.

he said the suspect was moved to an undisclosed location for safety reasons and will be handed over to Shaikh. “I have talked to Sindh Inspector General of Police Kaleem Imam who has assured me to fully protect the accused, therefore, I am going to hand [the principal] over to police either in Karachi or in Hyderabad today,” he said.

Mr Vankwani said that the protesters had vandalised three temples, a private school and multiple houses belonging to the Hindu community and added that he had asked police to register an FIR against people involved in the riots.