Pak Hindu body seeks constitutional rights for minorities

Pak Hindu Body Seeks Constitutional Rights for Minorities

A Hindu rights organisation in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province has announced an outreach campaign urging the provincial government to ensure implementation of constitutional guarantees for minority protection.

Haroon Sarab Dayal, 55, was unanimously elected president of the All Balmik Hindu Community Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (ABHCKP) on Saturday. He said the community continued to face challenges related to legal protection and equal opportunities, and called on the government to strengthen minority protection mechanisms. Dayal serves as a member of the Pakistan Hindu Temple Management Committee under the federal Ministry of Religious Affairs.

The ABHCKP, a body more than a decade old, held a provincial consultative meeting Saturday in Kohat district to discuss challenges facing the Balmik Hindu community and a future roadmap for its welfare and constitutional rights. The meeting brought together community elders (Sarpanchs), local presidents of Balmik Sabhas, Hindu priests and religious scholars, lawyers, social activists, government officials, educationists, teachers, businesspeople and youth representatives from across the province.

Dayal told PTI that participants discussed constitutional safeguards, legal reforms, social inclusion and measures to strengthen the community. Addressing the gathering, he said the Balmik Hindu community, like many other vulnerable minority groups in Pakistan, continued to face challenges relating to legal protection, civil registration, education and equal opportunities.

He announced the launch of a province-wide outreach campaign and the formation of a provincial cabinet, with priorities including youth and women's leadership, improved access to legal documentation such as birth registration, marriage registration, national identity cards and inheritance rights, policy advocacy with provincial and federal institutions, and promotion of interfaith harmony through education and media.

Dayal, known for his work on human rights, interfaith harmony and minority protection, is a founding member of the Pakistan Council of World Religions (PCWR) and a leading member of the National Lobbying Delegation for Minority Rights.

The community also urged the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government to fully implement constitutional guarantees relating to fundamental rights and minority protection, Dayal said, calling specifically for implementation of Articles 9, 10, 20, 25, 27 and 36 of Pakistan's Constitution, all pertaining to minority and human rights. He also urged the federal government and Parliament to expedite minority personal laws and protection mechanisms, while appealing to national and international human rights organisations, UN agencies, diplomatic missions and civil society to support the empowerment and protection of vulnerable minority communities in Pakistan.

During the ceremony, community elders and religious leaders honoured the newly elected president with a traditional tilak, flower garlands and a traditional Pashtun turban. Devotional hymns were recited and prayers offered for peace, equality and prosperity for all citizens of Pakistan. Dayal later visited senior community members in Kohat to seek their blessings, according to a statement.

According to the 2023 Digital Population and Housing Census, the most authoritative data available, the Hindu population in the province stood at about 5,090, down from 5,392 in 2017. The Hindu population declined sharply after the 1947 Partition, with small community clusters remaining mainly in Peshawar, Kohat, Bannu, Dera Ismail Khan and parts of Hazara.