Violence, discrimination against Hindus in Sindh underreported: HRCP

LAHORE: The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan’s fact-finding study Exodus: Is the Hindu Community Leaving Sindh? – has underscored the state’s failure to protect a vulnerable minority, with many Hindu families compelled to migrate not only in connection with faith-based violence but also economic struggles and climate change.

At a meeting held here on Wednesday to share the study findings, HRCP Chairperson Asad Iqbal Butt pointed out that violence and discrimination against Hindu communities in Sindh was underreported. Many such communities felt compelled to migrate overseas, including to India, despite the social cost of doing so.

Rajvir Singh Sodha, special assistant to the Sindh chief minister for human rights, observed that many upper-caste Hindu families were subjected to extortion by criminal gangs amid deteriorating law and order in the province, thereby forcing them to migrate. HRCP Council Member Pushpa Kumari highlighted the vulnerability of Hindu women to abduction, forced conversion and underage marriage. Council Member and journalist Sohail Sangi called on Sindh and federal governments to take prompt steps to create a safer, more dignified environment for the Hindu community, including more effective law enforcement, greater Hindu representation in police, and a consistent dialogue between the government and local Hindu communities. The study has recommended collecting credible data on the migration of Hindu individuals and families from Sindh to assess the scale of the problem, deploying specialized law-enforcement units in areas with high violence against minorities, and enacting and enforcing legislation against forced conversions and underage marriages.