The Citizens Archive Pakistan:
A Case Study on Human Rights Education

Zainab Imam and Ali Abbas Ahmed

Human rights constitute a complex issue in Pakistan. With anextremely large, diverse and economically disenfranchised population, human rights are often ignored in pursuit of basic survival.
Although successive governments have enacted various measures to improve human rights awareness and counter violations that may occur, such
violations remain. (Khan, 2012)
Courts and law enforcement authorities suffer from lack of funds, political interference and massive backlogs of trial cases leading to lengthy
delays. Pakistan’s status as an Islamic democracy also means that the legal
system is made up of a mixture of both Islamic, and secular colonial laws
which means that the interpretation of whether human rights violations are
occurring is often on a case-to-case basis. Most observers and citizens generally agree that Pakistan’s legal code and system is largely concerned withcrime and national security, and less with the protection of individual orcommunity rights. As a result a multitude of human rights violations occur
with frightening regularity in Pakistan, ranging from the trampling of rights
related to free speech and assembly, sectarian and religious intolerance,
discrimination against minorities, illegal detention and enforced disappearances. (Human Rights Commission Pakistan, 2013)
Empowering the Community with Human Rights Education
The Citizens Archive of Pakistan (cap) is a non-profit organization dedicated to cultural and historic assets preservation and operates in Karachi,
Lahore and Islamabad. It seeks to educate the community, foster an awareness of the nation’s history, and instill pride in Pakistani citizens about theirheritage.
Cap focuses on the tradition of oral storytelling in Pakistan, emphasizing the importance of such narratives in a dialogue on national identity. It
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has three main goals: to preserve and provide access to its archive; to build
and support educational programs; and to develop educational products
based on the testimonies collected.
It shares Pakistan’s stories through educational outreach programs that
aim to change perceptions among schoolchildren to prevent abuses fromoccurring, improve critical thinking and inculcate a culture where future
generations have a greater awareness of the rights they are entitled to andrespect the rights of others.
Programs
Our vision is to develop cap as the foremost museum and heritage center ofPakistani history, photography, culture, literature, and historical documentation demonstrating the strength and spirit of Pakistan from the perspective of a citizen. Each exhibit and gallery will tell important stories about thecountry and provide an engaging and thought-provoking window into thenation’s past, present, and future. We firmly believe that it is only throughaccess to an unbiased version of history and introspection that a culture canbe created where individual and community rights are not only recognized
but also respected.
To achieve this objective, cap launched its flagship Oral History Project(ohp). The stories emerging from ohp, the secrets behind old photographs
and the personal experiences of our nation’s rich and varied people feeds
the material used in the School Outreach Tours lessons, the Shanaakht
Festival, and several exhibitions. The ohp concentrates on collecting narratives from people about significant events in their lives during the early daysof Pakistan, providing an alternative perspective to historical literature. The
ohp works with different communities in Pakistan under sub-projects suchas the Minority Project to educate the masses on contributions to Pakistan
by members of minority communities thereby encouraging a greater respectfor minority rights. The Minority Project also aims to archive and preservevarious records such as letters, newspapers, refugee cards, official correspondences, and passports.
Promoting tolerance and acceptance of an individual’s rights to religious and cultural freedoms is a central theme of cap’s Minority Project.
Interviews are conducted with members of minorities about what it is liketo be a member of minority in Pakistan, and religious and cultural festi-

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vals are covered to highlight and promote cultural and religious diversity.
This is especially important in a country where minority rights are regularly
trampled upon, with discrimination and sectarian violence tragically on therise. Cap seeks to foster a greater understanding and respect for culturaland religious diversity, and regularly disseminates archived material including interviews and photographs through podcasts, social media, newslettersand direct access to the archive upon request. Researchers, historians andwriters regularly use materials from the Minority Project archives for theirwork. A notable example is journalist Haroon Khalid’s ethnographic study
on minorities in Pakistan White Trail (2013), which drew heavily from the
Minority Project archives.

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Holi celebration in Karachi (March 2013)

In line with cap’s belief that history and culture belong to everyone
and should be accessible to all citizens, various free of cost, bilingual, multimedia exhibitions are organized every year in order to accommodate people
from all walks of life. Some of these exhibitions include: Shanaakht Festival(Identity Festival); Birth of Pakistan; Dekho Pakistan (See Pakistan); This is
My Story; Dialogue with Pakistan; State of Being so Divided; and Exchange
for Change Exhibition. These exhibitions seek to educate the community as
a whole, encourage honest introspection and critical analysis of one’s surroundings, foster an awareness of individual rights, and inspire citizens torecognize and respect these rights.
Cap launched the Exchange for Change (efc) project in 2010 in an attempt to challenge stereotypes, encourage tolerance and a more inclusive
attitude and discourage negative perceptions. Efc is an exciting initiativeby cap that aims at improving relationships between Pakistan and India
through cultural exchanges and people-to-people diplomacy.
By initiating a dialogue this program seeks to help students across bothborders realize that a civilized, mutually beneficial and friendly discourse is
not just possible but sustainable too. Through cross-culture communication, students can have a clearer understanding of their own history, culture
and lifestyles as well as of their peers. Cap believes that such interaction will

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in turn lead to a positive change and eliminate cultural misconceptions andinter-generational conflict. A sustained exchange of letters, postcards, pictures, artwork and videos encourages children to form their own opinions,and the exhibitions of materials from these exchanges draw massive crowds,
leading to the hope that such instances of people-to-people diplomacy will
influence the community at large.
The efc exhibition showcases materials collected throughout the
project, including letters written by Pakistani and Indian students to theircounterparts, picture postcards, oral histories of the students’ grandparents
and video exchanges. Participating schools, the media, parents of the students, and the community at large are invited to these exhibitions, to ensurea wider dissemination of the material collected and further promote crosscultural interaction and acceptance.

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Exchanges between Indian and Pakistani students (2012-2013)

Similarly cap’s 2011 ‘State of Being so Divided’ exhibition aimed to increase greater understanding of a period of widespread human rights violations and illuminate some of the events and personalities that shapedthat time. An interactive timeline recorded the arduous train journey from
Delhi to Lahore in 1947 and the beginnings of the new state of Pakistan.
Videos, photographs, objects, advertisements and oral histories took visitors through the 1950s and 1960s in Pakistan and ended with another partition and the birth of the state of Bangladesh.
All the images and oral histories used in the exhibition were from cap’s
archives, with a wide cross section of society invited to experience the exhibition in Lahore. The aim of holding free of cost, bilingual, multi-media
exhibitions on a regular basis is to accommodate people from all walks oflife, and informally educate the community about the past, encourage introspection, and increase awareness of individual rights in the hope that thiswill lead to a more tolerant and empowered society.

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To date, cap has digitized more than fifty thousand photographs fromprivate and public collections. Its photography archive is open to researchers, students and universities. The archive contains comprehensive images

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H u m a n R i g h t s E d u c at i o n i n A s i a - Pa c i f i cof cultural and social events of the Indian sub-continent from 1930 till present times and is one of the most extensive in Pakistan, offering one of thegreatest selections of photography.
Empowering Students with Human Rights Education:
The Human Rights Modules
In line with the mission to share heritage and culture on a mass scale, cap
uses information from its archive to influence future generations. Throughcap Outreach Tours Program, educational programs for low-income schools
and colleges are held. The program is currently reaching out to over 8,000
students in Karachi and Lahore and the curriculum includes history, geography, and English Language with a strong focus on inculcating independentand critical thinking skills, and changing preconceived perceptions that may
be held about minority groups, gender roles and Pakistan’s creation.
Cap’s lesson plans exceed the perimeter of basic knowledge and information. The lesson plans focus on History, Geography, English Language,
and more importantly on character building with the introduction of subjects such as conflict resolution, gender issues, and minority rights. Asidefrom motivating each individual child, the emphasis is on encouraging
communities towards thinking logically and promoting equal gender parity
through the use of film, spoken word, and photography. With visual rendering as the foremost tool, various projects are designed to encourage theyouth to think critically and humanely.
The College Outreach Tour (cot) workshops utilize materials from
cap’s archive, promote civic sense, tolerance, democracy, constitutionalrights, and invoke critical thinking as well as an understanding of the country’s history and heritage. The program is bilingual and includes researchbased interactive activities designed to inculcate a broader vision of Pakistan.
The modules developed by the cot curriculum development team focus
on educating students about human rights and the importance of being entitled to and respecting these rights. The module titled “Human Rights” consists of three two-hour-long workshops that are carried out by our teachersin Karachi and Lahore. The techniques that these workshops employ range
from multimedia presentations and handouts that introduce students to thebasic concepts of human rights to activities and case studies that solicit responses from students to facilitate meaningful discussions about the subject

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matter. Furthermore, because the modules are available both in English and
Urdu, they vastly increased our reach by making them available to schoolsthat cater to various backgrounds. See Annexes for modules and materials
used in cot workshops.
What We’ve Learned
Before the workshops, the students were asked to describe what the term“human rights” entails, to which cap teachers received very vague answers.
Some students considered human rights to be so insignificant that they said
they had “other issues” to worry about while some seemed to believe thatsuch a category of rights did not exist. In a country like Pakistan, where human rights are trampled by violence, social injustice, and economic inequality, it barely comes as a surprise that human rights appear to be a completely
new concept to these young adult college students.
However, these responses did not represent the students’ curiosity
about the concept. Once the team provided them with a formal definitionof human rights as defined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights(udhr), the students began to come up with their own lists of examples ofrights that should be included under the umbrella of human rights.
As the discussion continued, personal stories emerged, which were thespecial yardstick that helped cap measure the success and impact of its human rights education module. Upon learning that the right to marry according to one’s will was a human right recognized by the United Nations,
one student reflected that he had forcibly been engaged to a cousin by his
parents against his choice. Using the critical thinking abilities that have been
inculcated through the curriculum, he said that the cultural and societal
barriers in place in Pakistan have led to the usurping of human rights in the
country.
Another one of the rights that the students seemed to be unaware of
was the right to a free and fair trial for criminals. The teachers cited a particularly gruesome example of vigilante or mob justice in Pakistan – known
as the Sialkot Lynching Case – in which two young boys, who were alleged
to be robbers, were hung upside down and lynched to death by a mob. Using
the basic concept of trial-for-all, the students brought up extrajudicial killings as an example of human rights violation, citing the incident where a28

H u m a n R i g h t s E d u c at i o n i n A s i a - Pa c i f i cyoung boy who was shot to death in Karachi by a law enforcement official
who claimed that the boy was a robber.
Interestingly, students linked abuse of power to human rights violations
with the powerful in Pakistan exploiting their advantage over the poor andthe helpless. Some students, mostly young men, said that their right to get
involved in political activity was trampled regularly by political parties’ student wings that wielded significant influence over university and college administrations, and forced students to attend the speeches of their leaders inorder to show ‘street strength’. If the students refused, they were threatenedand sometimes physically harmed.
Changes in Opinion
Following the workshops, the students were asked to fill out feedback forms
that asked questions to assess how they felt about key issues in light of theuniversal definition of human rights. 90 percent of the respondents believedthat human rights violations were common in Pakistan, while a whopping
98 percent said that they believed that human rights awareness could promote peace and stability in the country.
There was also a meaningful discussion in the module on whether democratic governments or military regimes had better human rights records.
As a result, 14 percent of the students said that human rights were granted
only in military-governed countries but 78 percent of the students opposedthat belief. 60 percent of the participants maintained that democratic states
were more likely to endorse and preserve human rights.
When asked who they felt was responsible for ensuring human rights inthe country, 56 percent of the students noted it was the responsibility of thegovernment, 16 percent said society, 6 percent said religion, and 4 percent
said rights need to and should be demanded. In response to the subjective
questions, the students gave varied answers. When asked about the purposeof human rights, 38 percent believed the purposes was to provide justicefor all citizens of the world, 14 percent said to provide security, 13 percent
thought it was to provide equal opportunities for all, whereas 4 percent said
to ensure peace of mind for all.
Perhaps the most encouraging statistic from the survey was that 93 percent of students recognized that the existence of human rights could promote peace and prosperity whereas their absence would lead to an unhappy

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and disenfranchised population. This change signaled that the students had
gained a greater understanding of the value of a society that respects individual rights through the content presented by the workshops.
Outlook on Major Issues
The section of the workshop that allowed students to reflect on their own
experiences had a profound impact on the students’ beliefs. 69 percent of
those surveyed after the workshop felt that killing a human being without
following the law was unjustified. Furthermore, 77 percent of the students
felt that the law must not be taken into one’s own hands, but 2 percent of thestudents noted that in a country like Pakistan where crime was rampant andlaw enforcement was weak, one must be able to defend him or herself even
if it meant breaking the law. When asked specifically about extrajudicial killings, 85 percent of the students said that they thought that this practice did
nothing to promote peace in the community.
Much of the module’s content allowed for close examination of humanrights issues prevalent in Pakistan, and it was evident that students had thechance to internalize those ideas with regards to their own experiences. On
the subject of human trafficking, 80 percent of the students believed that
it was one of Pakistan’s biggest human rights problems. Bonded labor wasanother topic that was featured prominently in the workshop and the following survey showed that 75 percent of the students believed that bonded
labor was modern-day slavery. This is in contrast to 37 percent that did notthink that slavery existed in Pakistan. Moreover, 53 percent of the students
were aware that there were two million bonded laborers in Pakistan.
When asked if underage children should be working in bangle industries, carpet weaving or tanneries or not, 56 percent of the students believedthat it should be outlawed and instead these children should be in school.
15 percent believed that children were forced to work because their families
owe money to their landlords, whereas 13 percent said that even if thesechildren worked the government was responsible for devising policies toprotect their rights. On the same line, 4 percent of the students felt thatlabor unions should amalgamate their resources to fight for the rights ofchild workers.

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Female Empowerment and Minority Rights
One of the key changes that the Outreach Tour programs aim to cultivate
is the shift from set ideas about gender roles and preferences. As a result of
the workshop, 78 percent of the students believed that women and othermarginalized groups tended to suffer greater apathy towards violations of
their human rights. Nearly 85 percent of the students said that women mustbe allowed to contribute to the workforce. It was further heartening to seethat of the proportion of students who supported women’s right to work, 78
percent were young girls who said that they would like to pursue a career.
It was observed in the survey from another module on gender that an
overwhelming 100 percent of respondents felt honor killings (karokari)
were unjustified. This number was a striking increase of 73 percent fromthe baseline survey conducted before the module was taught. Such numbers
help us gauge the significant and positive changes in attitudes that occur in
response to the information and ideas presented in our workshops.
Religious tolerance, particularly towards minority groups who live inPakistan, is also one of the major objectives of the Outreach Tours’ curriculum. When asked if they thought Muslims had the right to kill a Muslim
or non-Muslim who was deemed to have offended Islamic sensibilities, 92
percent of the students said they did not. 45 percent of the students also did
not favor discrimination towards religious minorities while 45 percent of
the students said that the law must treat Muslims and non-Muslims equally.
In addition, 93 percent of the students surveyed also agreed that all individuals regardless of caste, creed, ethnicity, gender or religion were entitledto basic human rights. This was a major increase from 69 percent from thebaseline survey. It was also observed that 81 percent of the respondents fromthe post-feedback survey conducted after teaching the ‘Minorities’ module
felt that nobody should be denied employment because they were part of aminority, up 29 percent from the baseline survey.
It is also worth noting that the concept of stereotypes garnered a strong
response from students, with many of them pledging at the end of the session never to judge people based simply on their appearance or culturalprescription.

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Future Prospects
Owing to the response received through the Outreach Tour programs, cap
recognizes a significant space for further development of educational policyin Pakistan. Not only does cap hope to expand its network and increase thenumber of students benefiting from the Outreach Tours, but it also hopes
to instil important values in the Pakistani youth, such as greater respect forhuman rights. Moreover, cap hopes to influence curriculum developmentin the country so that more students in the country can develop a sense ofsocial responsibility toward their communities and are equipped with tools
to better their lives and the country as a whole.
References
Human Rights Commission of Pakistan. 2013. State of Human Rights in 2012
Annual Report (March 2013).
Khan, T. H. 2012. President Zardari signs bill to establish human rights commission. The News. 31 May 2012. Available at www.thenews.com.pk/Todays-News13-15008-President-Zardari-signs-bill-to-establish-human-rights-commission (accessed on 28 January 2014).
Haroon Khalid. 2013. A White Trail. New Delhi: Westland Ltd.

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Annex A
Sample Materials
College Outreach Tours (COT) Workshop 3.2 “Human Rights” Homework assignment.
COT Module 3.1 Handout. Universal Declaration of Human Rights
COT Module 7 “Minorities” Handout. Soldier Bazaar Temple Razed in Hurried
Operation. The Express Tribune. 2nd December 2012.
1. College Outreach Tours (COT) Workshop 3.2 “Human Rights”
Activity: Chits in the Hat
Options for Group leaders:
1. Minority
2. Sindhi woman displaced by floods
3. 8-year old son of a bonded kiln worker
4. Rich Muslim businessman
5. Minority sect like Shia, Bori or Ismaili
You are to discuss with your group members and evaluate the human rights
temperature of the group that you belong to. Write down all the factors that affect yourgroup. You may also suggest ways to overcome your difficulties and resolve any problems
that you may face due to human rights violations.
Consider the following factors in your analysis in order to determine the human rights
temperature in your society:• Freedom to practice your religion• Freedom of movement• Freedom of employment• Freedom to security of life and property• Freedom to acquire education• Freedom to acquire medical services• Fair wages• Behavior with employees• Stereotypes• Freedom of marriage• Freedom of opinion and expression

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33• Freedom of peaceful assembly• Limitation of working hours in proportion to wages• Respect for private life, honor and reputation• Freedom to have property• Freedom to govern or participate in public service• Preservation and practice of culture and traditions.
Homework Assignment
2. COT Module 3.1 Handout
Universal Declaration of Human Rights
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which was adopted by the United
Nations General Assembly on 10 December 1948, was the result of the experience of theSecond World War. With the end of that war, and the creation of the United Nations, theinternational community vowed never again to allow atrocities like those of that conflictto happen again. World leaders decided to complement the United Nations Charter with aroad map to guarantee the rights of every individual everywhere.
(Text of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights)
PREAMBLE
Whereas recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights
of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace inthe world,
Whereas disregard and contempt for human rights have resulted in barbarous acts
which have outraged the conscience of mankind, and the advent of a world in whichhuman beings shall enjoy freedom of speech and belief and freedom from fear and want
has been proclaimed as the highest aspiration of the common people,
Whereas it is essential, if man is not to be compelled to have recourse, as a lastresort, to rebellion against tyranny and oppression, that human rights should be protected

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H u m a n R i g h t s E d u c at i o n i n A s i a - Pa c i f i cby the rule of law,
Whereas it is essential to promote the development of friendly relations between
nations,
Whereas the peoples of the United Nations have in the Charter reaffirmed their faith infundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person and in the equal
rights of men and women and have determined to promote social progress and better
standards of life in larger freedom,
Whereas Member States have pledged themselves to achieve, in co-operation with
the United Nations, the promotion of universal respect for and observance of human rights
and fundamental freedoms,
Whereas a common understanding of these rights and freedoms is of the greatest
importance for the full realization of this pledge,
Now, Therefore the General Assembly proclaims this Universal Declaration of Human
Rights as a common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations, to the end
that every individual and every organ of society, keeping this Declaration constantly in
mind, shall strive by teaching and education to promote respect for these rights andfreedoms and by progressive measures, national and international, to secure their
universal and effective recognition and observance, both among the peoples of Member
States themselves and among the peoples of territories under their jurisdiction.
(Following is simplified list of the rights in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights)
1. We Are All Born Free & Equal. We are all born free. We all have our own thoughts
and ideas. We should all be treated in the same way.
2. Don’t Discriminate. These rights belong to everybody, whatever our differences.
3. The Right to Life. We all have the right to life, and to live in freedom and safety.
4. No Slavery. Nobody has any right to make us a slave. We cannot make anyone ourslave.
5. No Torture. Nobody has any right to hurt us or to torture us.
6. You Have Rights No Matter Where You Go. I am a person just like you!
7. We’re All Equal Before the Law. The law is the same for everyone. It must treat us
all fairly.
8. Your Human Rights are Protected by Law. We can all ask for the law to help us
when we are not treated fairly.
9. No Unfair Detainment. Nobody has the right to put us in prison without good reason
and keep us there, or to send us away from our country.
10. The Right to Trial. If we are put on trial this should be in public. The people who

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try us should not let anyone tell them what to do.
11. We’re Always Innocent Till Proven Guilty. Nobody should be blamed for doing
something until it is proven. When people say we did a bad thing we have the right toshow it is not true.
12. The Right to Privacy. Nobody should try to harm our good name. Nobody has theright to come into our home, open our letters, or bother us or our family without a goodreason.
13. Freedom to Move. We all have the right to go where we want in our own country
and to travel as we wish.
14. The Right to Seek a Safe Place to Live. If we are frightened of being badly treatedin our own country, we all have the right to run away to another country to be safe.
15. Right to a Nationality. We all have the right to belong to a country.
16. Marriage and Family. Every grown-up has the right to marry and have a family ifthey want to. Men and women have the same rights when they are married, and when
they are separated.
17. The Right to Your Own Things. Everyone has the right to own things or share them.
Nobody should take our things from us without a good reason.
18. Freedom of Thought. We all have the right to believe in what we want to believe,to have a religion, or to change it if we want.
19. Freedom of Expression. We all have the right to make up our own minds, to think
what we like, to say what we think, and to share our ideas with other people.
20. The Right to Public Assembly. We all have the right to meet our friends and towork together in peace to defend our rights. Nobody can make us join a group if we don’t
want to.
21. The Right to Democracy. We all have the right to take part in the government ofour country. Every grown-up should be allowed to choose his or her own leaders.
22. Social Security. We all have the right to affordable housing, medicine, education,and childcare, enough money to live on and medical help if we are ill or old.
23. Workers’ Rights. Every grown-up has the right to do a job, to a fair wage for hisor her work, and to join a trade union.
24. The Right to Play. We all have the right to rest from work and to relax.
25. Food and Shelter for All. We all have the right to a good life. Mothers and children,
people who are old, unemployed or disabled, and all people have the right to be cared for.
26. The Right to Education. Education is a right. Primary school should be free. We
should learn about the United Nations and how to get on with others. Our parents canchoose what we learn.
27. Copyright. Copyright is a special law that protects one’s own artistic creations and36

H u m a n R i g h t s E d u c at i o n i n A s i a - Pa c i f i cwritings; others cannot make copies without permission. We all have the right to our own
way of life and to enjoy the good things that art, science and learning bring.
28. A Fair and Free World. There must be proper order so we can all enjoy rights andfreedoms in our own country and all over the world.
29. Responsibility. We have a duty to other people, and we should protect their rights
and freedoms.
30. No One Can Take Away Your Human Rights.
Human Rights
3. COT Module 7 “Minorities” Handout
Soldier Bazaar temple razed in hurried operation
KARACHI:In a hurried operation on Saturday, a builder demolished a century-old temple in
Soldier Bazaar while the Sindh High Court was hearing a petition seeking a stay order.
Apart from razing down the pre-partition Shri Rama Pir Mandir, the private builder also
demolished three or four houses located next to it. Nearly 40 people became homelessas a result.
“They destroyed our mandir [place of worship] and humiliated our gods,” said anangry Prakash, pointing towards the huge debris of concrete, stones and walls of thetemple. The demolishing team did place the statues of four Hindu deities on the side but
the residents accused them of taking away their gold jewellery and crowns. Pointing to
the bruises on his arms, Lakshman said that, “they hit me with their guns when I tried tostop them. I told them to kill me instead of destroying our holy place.”
Banwri recalled that the demolition teams arrived around 11 in the morning. She
was preparing breakfast when she heard the thundering noise of a bulldozer. She rushed
outside, only to receive instructions to bring her bed, cupboard and other essential items
outside the house. “I watched my house go down in just minutes and I couldn’t doanything.”
She added that, during the demolition, the area was cordoned off by the police andRangers with tents put up all around. Outsiders were not allowed to enter, she added.
Saveeta was among those 40 people who lost her house. “The dowry that I had given to
my daughter for her wedding is all buried here,” she said with tears. With her husband
out of station, she and her three children would be spending the night under the open sky.
There are around 150 Hindus in the neighbourhood and nearly four families live ineach of the houses that were destroyed, according to an elderly resident, Kaali Das.

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37“People were living in cramped houses, separated only by curtains. Over here, we live
like animals,” he said, adding that some of these houses were as high as three storeys.
Angered by the builders’ actions, the crowd demanded the government arrange
tickets to India for them. “If you don’t want us, we will go to India,” screamed a woman.
Another man added that, “our temple is as sacred to us as your mosque is to you.”
For their part, the police denied the existence of the temple completely. The police
maintained that they had orders to remove the encroachments. DSP Pervaiz Iqbal of
Nabi Buksh police station said, “There was no temple there. There were just Hindu gods
present inside the houses and we made sure that they were safe.”
The people were given plenty of time to remove their belongings out of the house, hesaid. “We did not injure anyone. In fact those people threw stones on us and our SHO Abid
Hussain Shah was injured.”
The residents managed, however, to fish out a plaque of the temple from under
the debris. Maharaj Badri, who lived inside the temple, also denied that the land was
encroached upon. “Our ancestors have been living here way since independence. We are
not encroachers,” he said.
Military Lands and Cantonment director Zeenat Ahmed insisted that the temple
was “untouched” and denied that it was demolished. The operation was against illegal
occupants, she said, adding that temples are old grant property (evacuee property).
“The builder had possession of the place since years and these people wereencroachers, and encroachers have no religion,” she added.
Published in The Express Tribune, 2 December 2012.