ISLAMABAD: Protest against the abduction of teenage Hindu girl by an influential person continued on Thursday in in Pakistan’s Punjab province with members of minority Hindu community demanding her safe recovery from the government.
A teenage girl Naina was allegedly kidnapped from Rahim Yar Khan last month by an influential person Tahir Tamri with the help of his father and brothers.
According to the FIR lodged by Naina’s father Ragu Ram on April 5, six people had abducted his daughter on March 13 and the main suspect, Tahir Tamri, had taken her to the southern port city of . On March 14, the FIR said, she was converted to Islam at a seminary, Jamiatul Saeed Gulshan-i-Maimar, in Karachi. The complainant stated that after conversion to Islam, Naina was given a Muslim name Noor Fatima before tying a matrimonial knot with the suspect.
Her father said the video of embracing Islam and solemnising Nikkah was uploaded on social media.
Following failure of police to recover the girl in last two weeks, members of the Hindu community came on roads in Liaquatpur in Rahim Yar Khan district blocking the main highway for traffic. Their protest entered the second day on Thursday with members of the community holding placards and banners outside the Liaquatpur Press Club and chanting slogans against forced conversions of Hindu girls.
“Stop the forced conversion of Hindu girls after kidnapping them,” read a placard.
During the protest the girl’s parents reportedly threatened that they would set their house ablaze if they were not provided justice.
Police, however, assured the protesters that they would use all possible resources to provide them justice.
Umar Farooq Salamat, Rahim Yar Khan’s top police officer, said that he has sent a police party to Karachi for the recovery of the girl. The protesters ended their demonstration after being assured by police that the justice would be done.
Last month, two minor Hindu sisters, Raveena and Reena were allegedly kidnapped, forced to accept Islam and then got married to Muslim men in Ghotki town of . Following marriages of the girls, they were moved to Rahim Yar Khan.
