Sealed for 72 years, ancient Hindu temple in Pakistan opens to worshippers

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The peeling doorways of the Teja Singh Temple in Sialkot, with few remnants of its past glory still visible. July 5, 2019 (Photo by Benazir Shah)
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The sun shines in through the majestic open ceiling of the ancient Hindu temple. July 5, 2019 (Photo by Benazir Shah)
Updated 31 July 2019
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Sealed for 72 years, ancient Hindu temple in Pakistan opens to worshippers

  • Shawala Teja Singh temple was closed after thousands of Hindus fled to India during partition in 1947
  • Opened its doors on Saturday but formal ceremony planned for Aug 5 when Hindus celebrate Nag Panchami festival

SIALKOT, Pakistan: In April this year, Pakistani Hindu community leader Surinder Kumar got the phone call he had been waiting almost two decades to receive. 
On the line, an official from the state-run Evacuee Trust Property Board (ETPB) offered good news: the government had decided that a 1,000-year-old temple in Kumar’s hometown of Sialkot, sealed for 72 years, would be reopened.




The inner structure of the Teja Singh Temple, attacked by a mob in 1992, stands delipidated after 72 years of neglect. July 5, 2019 (Photo by Benazir Shah)

The ancient Shawala Teja Singh temple was closed to worshippers after thousands of Hindus fled to India when Britain divided its Indian empire into Muslim Pakistan and mainly Hindu India in 1947. The structure has since been governed by the ETPB in Pakistan, a body responsible for the maintenance of properties abandoned by people who left the newly created Pakistan at Partition.
Kumar says he has written hundreds of letters to Pakistani presidents and prime ministers since 2002, pleading that the temple be reopened. In each letter, he penned the same line: “There are close to 100 Hindu families in Sialkot, and only one temple, and that too is closed.”
But no one ever responded to Kumar’s supplications and he had all but given up when he heard from the Board earlier this year, igniting hope that the temple dedicated to the Hindu god of recreation would once again come alive with chants of “Hail Lord Shiva!”




Slogans and graffiti etched into the inner walls of the Teja Singh Temple, over-run for decades by drug addicts. July 5, 2019 (Photo by Benazir Shah)

On Saturday, the temple finally got a mini launch. Sialkot Deputy Commissioner Bilal Haider told local reporters that officials had collaborated with the Evacuee Trust Property Board to reopen the temple and “people are now free to visit anytime.”
On August 5, officials of the Board said, a formal opening ceremony would be held to mark the day Hindus celebrate the snake festival of Nag Panchami.
Minority communities in Pakistan are often targeted by right-wing groups and successive governments have in the past been reluctant to embrace the country’s non-Muslim heritage. But recent attempts to improve Pakistan’s image have included overtures to minority communities by the last government of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz party, and now by the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf of Prime Minister Imran Khan.
On December 25, just a few months after being elected to office in July polls, Khan said in a Twitter post that his government would “ensure that our minorities are treated as equal citizens.” 

Considered a conservative figure, Khan has in the past stressed dialogue with hard-liners including the Taliban, but in recent months has spoken about promoting religious tourism. 
Last year, his government announced it would allow Indian Sikh pilgrims to visit an ancient gurdwara in Sialkot. In a rare instance of cooperation, Pakistan also said last year it would work with India to construct a corridor which will give Sikh pilgrims from India single-day, visa-free access to visit a temple in the small Pakistani commune of Kartarpur where the founder of Sikhism is buried. 
The moves are all part of an official initiative to encourage tourism and project religious harmony in a region long marked by religious violence, senior officials said. 
“I can’t thank this government enough for supporting the Hindu community,” Kumar told Arab News in a phone interview this month.




Steps leading up to the ancient Shawala Teja Singh temple in a residential neighborhood of Sialkot. July 5, 2019 (Photo by Benazir Shah)

Dr. Aamer Ahmed, the new chairman of the Evacuee Trust Property Board, said the decision to open the Sialkot temple was communicated to him by the prime minister soon after Ahmed took office in May. The PM Office and information ministry did not respond to repeated calls seeking comment on whether PM Khan has directly ordered the temple’s relaunch. 
But Ahmed said the decision was born from a realization for the need for a Hindu temple in Pakistan’s 13th largest city. 
“We noticed how big the Hindu community was here,” Ahmed told Arab News in an interview. Restoration work was ordered soon after. 




The sun shines in through the majestic open ceiling of the ancient Hindu temple. July 5, 2019 (Photo by Benazir Shah)

Once a marvel of granite and sandstone, the temple, which sits high on a sand dune in a congested, residential neighborhood, has fallen into profound disrepair over the last many years. The intricate carvings on the thick outside pillars have long faded or been scrubbed off by drug addicts and roving bandits taking refuge in the temple, and the tall, imposing idols of Lord Shiva stolen or destroyed.
Now, under the supervision of Sumera Rizvi, a deputy administrator at the ETPB, basic repair work is underway, she said. A boundary wall has been constructed to mark the perimeters of the building and doors refitted near the prayer room. The monument’s exterior and interior have been scrubbed clean and the graffiti on its exterior walls scraped off to make it ready for August 5.
“For the August ceremony, idols of Hindu deities are being transported to the temple from other temples in Pakistan and India,” Rizvi said. 




The exterior walls of the Teja Singh Temple in Sialkot, where complete restoration work is estimated to take five years. July 5, 2019 (Photo by Benazir Shah)

Officials said complete restoration would take up to five years, for which UNESCO and the Karachi-based Aga Khan Foundation had been taken on board.
“We don’t want to renovate it in a rushed manner... build a wall here and white-wash there and be done,” EPTB’s Ahmed said. “We want to restore it to its past dignity and grandeur, which will take time.”
For Ravi Dawan, general secretary of the Pakistan Hindu Panchayat, the Shawala Teja Singh temple’s restoration and opening is a huge victory for Pakistani Hindus.
“Of the 10,000 (Hindu temples) in Pakistan, only 4,000 are functional,” Dawan told Arab News. “Majority of the temples have either been lost to encroachments or converted into shops, scrap yards and homes.”
Syed Saeed ul Hassan Shah, Punjab’s minister for religious affairs, said restoring and reopening abandoned places of worship for Sikhs, Hindus and Buddhists was part of the government’s agenda to boost religious tourism and reap its economic benefits. 




The serene, 1,000-year-old Teja Singh Temple, built of sandstone and granite, has fallen into profound disrepair over the years. July 5, 2019 (Photo by Benazir Shah)

“When these religious tourists visit Pakistan, it will give a boost to our economy,” Shah said. 
But most importantly, Rizvi added, it would foster interfaith harmony in a country long roiled by religious violence and hate. 
“I get cards, letters and sometimes personal visits from Hindus on a daily basis these days,” she said with a smile, speaking about the love she had received from the minority community since she started supervising restoration of the temple. “This is how we should live: like brothers and sisters, respecting each others’ space.”


Pakistan parliament approves bills to extend tenure of services chiefs to five years

Updated 04 November 2024
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Pakistan parliament approves bills to extend tenure of services chiefs to five years

  • Extension in services of army, navy and air force chiefs follows controversial amendments to the constitution last month
  • The opposition PTI party condemns the amendments for changing Pakistan “from a democracy into a monarchy”

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s National Assembly and Senate on Monday approved bills to extend the tenure of the army, navy, and air force chiefs from three to five years, amid protests by the opposition benches. 

The office of the army chief is considered to be the most powerful in the country, with the army having ruled Pakistan for almost half of its 75-year history. Even when not directly in power, the army is considered to be the invisible guiding hand in politics and holds considerable sway in internal security, foreign policy, and economic affairs, among other domains. 

Six bills were passed by the upper and lower houses on Monday evening, including one to increase the term of the services chiefs.

“In the said Act, in section 8A, in sub-section (1), for the expression “three (03)” the word “five (05)” shall be substituted,” read the bill, seeking to amend the Pakistan Army Act, 1952.

Similar bills were passed to increase the duration of the country’s naval and air force chiefs to five years also. 

“The purpose of these amendments are to make consistent the Pakistan Army Act, 1952 (XXXIX of 1952) The Pakistan Navy Ordinance, 1961 (Ordinance No. XXXV of 1961) and The Pakistan Air Force Act, 1953 (VI of 1953) with the maximum tenure of the Chief of the Army Staff, the Chief of the Naval Staff and the Chief of the Air Staff and to make consequential amendments for uniformity in the aforementioned laws.” 

Speaking outside parliament, the chairman of the opposition PTI party, Gohar Ali Khan, said:

“Today, democracy has been changed into a monarchy.”

Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly, Omar Ayub Khan, said “modifying the service chiefs’ tenure is not a good thing for the country and the armed forces.”

The passage of the new bills follows controversial amendments made to the constitution last month, granting lawmakers the authority to nominate the chief justice of Pakistan, who previously used to be automatically appointed according to the principle of seniority.

The amendments allowed the government to bypass the senior-most judge of the Supreme Court, Justice Mansoor Ali Shah, and appoint Justice Yahya Afridi as the country’s top judge, replacing former chief justice Qazi Faez Isa. 

The opposition and the legal fraternity had opposed the amendments, arguing that they were aimed at granting more power to the executive in making judicial appointments and curtailing the independence of the judiciary. The government denies this.


Pakistani forces kill six militants in shootouts near border with Afghanistan — military

Updated 04 November 2024
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Pakistani forces kill six militants in shootouts near border with Afghanistan — military

  • Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, which borders Afghanistan, has witnessed a number of attacks recently
  • Pakistan blames the surge in militancy on militants operating out of Afghanistan, Kabul denies the allegations

ISLAMABAD: Pakistani security forces have killed six militants in two separate engagements in the country’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province, the Pakistani military said on Monday.
A militant was killed in an exchange of fire during an intelligence-based operation in North Waziristan’s Dosali area, according to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the military’s media wing.
In the second incident, Pakistani forces intercepted a group of militants while infiltrating the country’s border with Afghanistan in the South Waziristan district. Five militants were killed as a result.
“Pakistan has consistently been asking Interim Afghan Government to ensure effective border management on their side of the border,” the ISPR said in a statement.
“Interim Afghan Government is expected to fulfil its obligations and deny the use of Afghan soil by Khwarij [militants] for perpetuating acts of terrorism against Pakistan.”
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, which borders Afghanistan, has witnessed a number of attacks by the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and other militant groups that targeted security forces convoys and check posts, besides targeted killings and kidnappings of law enforcers and government officials in recent months.
Pakistan has frequently accused neighboring Afghanistan of sheltering and supporting militant groups, urging the Taliban administration in Kabul to prevent its territory from being used by armed factions to launch cross-border attacks.
Afghan officials, however, deny involvement, insisting Pakistan’s security issues are an internal matter of Islamabad.
 


Pakistan Navy test-fires ship-launched ballistic missile ranging 350 kilometers

Updated 04 November 2024
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Pakistan Navy test-fires ship-launched ballistic missile ranging 350 kilometers

  • The missile is capable of striking land and sea targets with ‘high precision’
  • Pakistan, India consider their missile programs as deterrent against each other

KARACHI: Pakistan Navy has successfully test-fired a ship-launched ballistic missile having a range of 350 km and capable of striking both land and sea targets, it said on Monday.
Pakistan sees its missile development as a deterrent against nuclear-armed arch-foe India. Both countries have fought multiple wars since their independence from Britain in 1947.
The two South Asian neighbors have long been developing missiles of varying ranges in a bid to ensure deterrence against possible attacks from each other, with analysts often warning these developments could push the region into an arms race.
“Pakistan Navy conducted a successful flight test of an indigenously developed ship-launched ballistic missile,” the Directorate General of Public Relations (DGPR) of Pakistan Navy said in a statement.
“The weapon system with 350km range is capable of engaging land and sea targets with high precision.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ikldB3jieWo
The flight test of the weapon system, equipped with a state-of-the-art navigation system and maneuverability features, was witnessed by Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Naveed Ashraf, senior naval officers, scientists and engineers.
President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee General Sahir Shamshad Mirza, Chief of Army Staff General Asim Munir and Chief of Air Staff Air Marshal Zaheer Ahmad Babar Sidhu congratulated the participating navy units and scientists on the development.
 
 


Qatar investment team due in Pakistan this month, PM Sharif says after Doha visit

Updated 04 November 2024
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Qatar investment team due in Pakistan this month, PM Sharif says after Doha visit

  • The statement comes days after Sharif visited Qatar seeking to bolster economic cooperation between both nations
  • Before arriving in Doha, Sharif attended the Future Investment Initiative in Riyadh and met the Saudi Crown Prince

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Monday a team of the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) will visit Pakistan this month to set up an information technology (IT) park in the South Asian country.
The statement came days after Sharif visited Qatar while seeking to bolster economic cooperation amid Pakistan’s efforts to boost foreign investment to stabilize its frail $350 billion economy.
Before arriving in Doha, Sharif attended the Future Investment Initiative in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, where he discussed trade and investment with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Speaking at a meeting of his cabinet, Sharif said a QIA team will visit Pakistan this month, while its chief of Asia-Pacific & Africa Investments, Faisal Bin Thani Al Thani, will also arrive in Islamabad by the end of this month.
“Qatar emir said the same thing. They also suggested setting up an IT park here [in Pakistan],” Sharif told his cabinet members in televised comments.
During his visit, Sharif led delegation-level talks with the Qatari emir before holding a separate meeting with him to discuss a wide array of issues.
“The leaders reviewed the entire spectrum of Pakistan-Qatar relations, exploring potential avenues for enhanced cooperation in trade, potential areas of investment, energy, and culture,” Sharif’s office said last week.
He also met a delegation of the Qatar Businessmen Association (QBA) and invited them to invest in Pakistan’s energy, infrastructure and technology sectors.
The developments came amid Pakistan’s attempts to increase trade and foreign investment after it narrowly escaped a default last year by securing a last-gasp $3 billion financial assistance package from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
The South Asian country has since sought to promote closer economic ties with regional and international allies to bolster its fragile economy, which has been suffering from a prolonged macroeconomic crisis.
 


Pakistan central bank cuts key rate by 250 bps to 15%

Updated 04 November 2024
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Pakistan central bank cuts key rate by 250 bps to 15%

  • Monday’s move follows cuts of 150 bps in June, 100 in July and 200 in September
  • It takes the total policy rate cuts in the country to 700 bps in under five months

KARACHI: Pakistan’s central bank cut its key policy rate by 250 basis points to 15 percent on Monday, it said in a statement, for a fourth straight reduction since June, as the country keeps up efforts to revive a sluggish economy with inflation easing.
Most respondents in a Reuters poll last week expected a cut of 200 bps after inflation moved down sharply from a multi-decade high of nearly 40 percent in May 2023, saying reductions were needed to bolster growth.
Average consumer price index inflation in the South Asian country is 8.7 percent in the current financial year, which started in July, the statistics bureau says. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) expects inflation to average 9.5 percent for the year ending June.
Monday’s move follows cuts of 150 bps in June, 100 bps in July, and 200 in September that have taken the rate from an all-time high of 22 percent, set in June 2023 and left unchanged for a year. It takes the total cuts to 700 bps in under five months.
October inflation came in at 7.2 percent, slightly above the government’s expectation of 6 percent to 7 percent. The finance ministry expects inflation to slow further to 5.5 percent to 6.5 percent in November.
However, inflation could pick up again in 2025, driven by electricity and gas price increases after a new $7-billion IMF bailout, and the potential impact of taxes on the retail, wholesale and the farm sector announced in the June budget to take effect in January 2025, some analysts say.