May 29, 2011 Story

CrisisBalochistan comment

Kali Kalat Hindu Mandir in Kalat Balochistan

We at CrisisBalochistan were alarmed to read India Today's most excellent coverage of the plight of Hindus in Pakistan "Soft Target in Pakistan: Abduction, oppression and forced conversion is fate of Hindus in Pakistan."

Qaswar Abbas writes that "The plight of Hindus in Pakistan came to light in January this year when Lakki Chand Garji, 82, a Hindu spiritual leader and an official of the Kala Mata temple in Kalat district of Baluchistan province, was kidnapped by unidentified gunmen from his home. He was released in April after a ransom of Rs 50 crore was paid, but the case remains unresolved till date."

We count ourselves amongst the world's luckiest travelers for having been granted a tour of the Kali Kalat Mandir in Kalat, Balochistan. The article above prompted me to pull clips from this brief visit to share with those who may not understand that while this kidnapping took place in Balochistan province, this appalling treatment of Hindus is not characteristic of the secular Baloch ethos or culture. Rather, it is symptomatic of an increasing radicalization across Pakistan that is fueled by state policies and failures. We agree entirely with the author's final assessment "If the hallmark of a nation is how it treats its minorities, perhaps Pakistan's title as a failed state is well deserved."

Note: Our apologies for the less than perfect camera/audio/editing in this video clip. Our visit to this temple was as spontaneous as its features surprising and we were not prepared to film it correctly. Nevertheless we captured what footage we could and now we wanted to quickly share what we had in our files.