Contents 

1. Introduction
2. Historical Background
3. Hindu Communities in Pakistan
4. Issues and Challenges Faced by Hindu Community of Pakistan
5. Social Inequality
6. Political and Economic Marginalisation
7. Cultural Challenges
8. Forced Conversions of Hindu Girls
9. Religious Persecution
10. Education Accessibility Issues
11. Dalit Hindus of Pakistan
12. Recommendations
13. Conclusion
14. References

 

Introduction

The Hindu community in Pakistan has long faced a multitude of issues and challenges that have significantly impacted their lives. After Islam, Hinduism is the second most popular religion in Pakistan. Even though the Pakistan Hindu Council asserts that there are 8 million Hindus living in Pakistan and that they make up 4% of the population, Hinduism is no longer one of the region’s most popular religions. Instead, it now only makes up 2.14% of Pakistan’s population or 4.4 million people. Hindu population density in the country is highest in the Umerkot district, where it is 52.2%, and lowest in the Tharparkar district, where it is 714,698.[1]

The Pakistani constitution declares that members of all religions should enjoy equal rights and protection under the law, however, this has not been realized for many Hindus living in the country who are considered second-class citizens by virtue of their faith. [2]They have suffered from economic deprivation, lack access to adequate healthcare services, and often face difficulty in obtaining education or employment opportunities because they are discriminated against on religious grounds.

Historical Background

One of the world’s oldest civilizations, the Indus Valley Civilization, has its epicentre in Pakistan. It is believed that the Mohenjo-daro Pashupati figure evolved to represent Shiva and the Mother Goddess as Shakti.  Many archaeological discoveries, including the Indus Valley Civilization’s Yogic postures and the Swastika emblem, hint at earlier influences that could have influenced Hinduism.  Hinduism, which developed in this region of South Asia, now has a significant amount of the religious doctrines and mythology of the inhabitants of the Indus Valley.[3] 

The Composition of Hindu Literature 

The Rig Veda, the oldest Hindu literature, is said to have been written later, during the Vedic period, in the Punjab region of modern-day Pakistan (and India), on the banks of the Indus River, around 1500 BCE.[4]

The Mahabharata, an Indian epic tale, features a significant role for the Sindh kingdom and its emperors. In addition, according to a Hindu tale, Lava, a son of Lord Rama from the Ramayana, constructed the Pakistani city of Lahore first, followed by his twin Kusha, who established the city of Kasur. Hindu literary works like the Ramayana and the Mahabharata heavily include the northwesterly Gandhara realm and the fabled Gandharan people. Sanskrit is the source of several Pakistani city names, including Peshawar and Multan.[5]

The Mahabharata, an Indian epic tale, features a significant role for the Sindh kingdom and its emperors. In addition, according to a Hindu tale, Lava, a son of Lord Rama from the Ramayana, constructed the Pakistani city of Lahore first, followed by his twin Kusha, who established the city of Kasur. Hindu literary works like the Ramayana and the Mahabharata heavily include the northwesterly Gandhara realm and the fabled Gandharan people. Sanskrit is the source of several Pakistani city names, including Peshawar and Multan. Demetrius of Bactria established the Indo-Greek Kingdom, which comprised Gandhara and Punjab and reached its height under Menander (165–150 BCE), fostering the flourishing of the Greco-Buddhist culture in the area. In the sixth century BCE, during the late Vedic era, Taxila had one of the first universities and centres of higher learning in the world. The school was made up of a number of monasteries where religious teaching was given on an individual basis without the use of huge dormitories or lecture halls. Alexander the Great’s invasion armies and Chinese travellers both made note of the ancient institution in the fourth or fifth centuries AD.

At its height, the Rai dynasty of Sindh (AD 489–632) ruled the region and its surroundings. The Pala dynasty was the last Buddhist empire, and under Dharmapala and Devapala it stretched across South Asia from what is now Bangladesh northern India and Pakistan.[6]

Arrival of Islam

Following Muhammad bin Qasim’s conquest of Sindh and the death of Raja Dahir, Pakistan began to Islamize and the number of Hindus began to decline. Following that, the Ghaznavids, Ghurids, and Delhi Sultanate all conquered parts of the Indian subcontinent via Pakistan, which led to the conversion of Buddhists and Hindus to Islam. The country of Pakistan became a Muslim-majority region during the Mughal Empire.[7]

The “two-nation hypothesis” had been promoted at the time Pakistan was founded. In accordance with this view, Pakistan’s Hindu minority was to be treated fairly in order to guarantee the safety of India’s Muslim minority. Pakistan’s founder, Muhammad Ali Jinnah, said in a speech to the country’s founding assembly, “You will find that Hindus will cease to be Hindus and Muslims will cease to be Muslims, not in the religious sense, because that is each person’s personal faith, but in the political sense as the citizens of the State. Almost 4.7 million Hindus and Sikhs from West Pakistan fled for India when Pakistan gained its independence in 1947, while 6.5 million Muslims decided to immigrate to Pakistan. The intense communal tension under the British Raj, people’s deep mistrust of one another, the savagery of violent mobs, and the hostility between the religious groups were the causes of this migration. The fact that more than 1 million people died in the terrible turmoil of 1947 should serve as evidence of the terror and hatred that millions of Hindus, Muslims, and Sikhs felt as they hurriedly abandoned their ancestral homes following independence.[8]

Hindu Communities of Pakistan

Sindhi Hindus

 3.35 million Sindhi Hindus, mostly concentrated in Mirpur Khas Division and Hyderabad Division, which together account for more than 2 million of them, live in the Sindh province of Pakistan, according to the 2017 census.

Tamil Hindus

When Karachi was established in the early 20th century during the British Raj, several Tamil Hindu families went there. Later, Tamils from Sri Lanka who entered during the Sri Lankan Civil War joined them. There are about 100 Tamil Hindu households living in the Madrasi Para area. The largest Tamil Hindu temple in Karachi was the Maripata Mariamman Temple, which has since been destroyed.[9]

Nanakpanthis

Hindus known as Nanakpanthi adore both Hindu gods and Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhism. Nowadays, a sizable portion of Sindhi Hindus identify as Nanakpanthi.[10]

Balmiki Hindus

Hindus who venerate the Ramayana author Valmiki, also known as the Balmikis, are known as the Valmiki. After the Partition, the majority of Valmiki Hindus converted to either Christianity or Islam. Many of those who converted, though, continue to honour Valmiki and revere him. The Valmiki Mandir in Lahore is the most significant place of devotion for Valmikis in Pakistan. The Schedule Caste was where the majority of the Balmikis (or Valmikis) belonged.[11]

Pashtun Hindus

A small Pashtun Hindu group that migrated to Unniara, Rajasthan, India after the partition is known as the Sheen Khalai, which means “blue-skinned” (relating to the colour of the tattoos on Pashtun women’s faces). The community used to live in the Baluchistan parts of the British Indian province of Quetta, Loralai, and Maikhter before 1947. They are mostly Pashtuns from the Kakar tribe. They still speak Pashto and do the Attan dance to honour Pashtun culture.[12]

Punjabi Hindus

A tiny number of Punjabi Hindus live in Pakistan’s Punjab region, primarily in Lahore, where there are about 200 Hindu families. Despite the fact that many went to India after the partition of India and Pakistan in 1947, the majority of Punjabis in the 1900s remained Hindu.[13]

Issues and Challenges Faced by the Hindu Community of Pakistan

There has been a long history of discrimination against the Hindu community of Pakistan, with their basic human rights often disregarded. The majority Muslim population continues to face systemic prejudice, leading to unequal access to education, healthcare and employment opportunities. Due to this institutionalised inequality, Hindu individuals and families have experienced feelings of marginalisation in Pakistani society.
Furthermore, there have been reports of physical violence directed at the Hindu community; including instances where individuals have had their religious symbols destroyed as well as being forced into conversion or exile. These acts are especially pertinent when considering that many Hindus live in socially conservative regions where they do not feel safe or accepted.

Social Inequality

The Hindu community of Pakistan is one of the most marginalized communities in the country. This is especially true in terms of social inequalities faced by this minority group, and their effects on the community’s access to basic rights, such as education and healthcare. Despite being a part of Pakistani society, Hindus have been denied certain privileges due to their socio-economic status. This has resulted in severe disparities between Hindus and other religious groups with regard to educational attainment, economic opportunities, and political representation.
One major issue facing the Hindu community is that they are often excluded from key decision-making processes at all levels of government. In addition, they face discrimination with regard to employment opportunities due to deep-rooted biases against them within society. Moreover, there have been reports of police brutality directed at members of this minority group on a regular basis.

Hindu minority members in Pakistan worry about ongoing harassment by religious extremists and lament the lack of state security given to them. Activists for Hinduism claim that “hidden data are stored on them and their honesty is often questioned.” They are prohibited from serving in the military, the court, or in positions of authority within the public service. The facts, which show a nearly nonexistent Hindu presence in the top echelons of the government, bureaucracy, and military services, support these assertions. The state-run media, religious orthodoxy, and educational institutions all contribute to discrimination and prejudice towards Hindus.[14]

Political and Economic Marginalization

The Hindu community of Pakistan has suffered from marginalization and discrimination, both politically and economically. As a minority group, Hindus have been excluded from the political process, denied access to economic resources and discriminated against religiously. This form of exclusion has resulted in poverty, unemployment and displacement among the Hindu population.

In terms of politics, Hindus have historically been deprived of their right to participate in the electoral process due to restrictive citizenship laws that were enacted by successive Pakistani governments since 1947. This lack of representation means that Hindu voices are not heard or taken into account when decisions are being made at the national level. Additionally, Hindus have also been denied access to economic opportunities due to discriminatory policies such as quotas on government jobs and unequal land distribution laws which make it difficult for them to secure steady employment or gain ownership over land.[15]

Reserved Seats of National Assembly of Pakistan

Ten reserved seats in the National Assembly, 23 reserved seats in the four provincial assemblies, and four reserved seats in the Pakistani Senate are all provided for non-Muslims under Article 51(2A) of the Constitution. Hindus typically get four or five seats. In 2002, there were 332 seats in the national Parliament, up from 207 in 1997. Yet, the 10 designated seats for non-Muslims were not enlarged. Similar to this, the number of seats in Sindh’s provincial assembly increased from 100 to 159 and Punjab’s from 240 to 363 respectively, although the number of non-Muslim reserved seats remained the same. Ramesh Kumar Vankwani did introduce a bill to increase the number of seats for minorities, but it was not approved. Political parties Jamiat Ulema e Islam (F)  party is against giving reserved seats for minorities.[16]

Zia ul-Haq established a system allowing non-Muslims to vote exclusively for candidates who adhered to their own religion in the 1980s. Minority groups were given seats in the national and provincial assemblies. Government representatives claimed that the separate electorates system is a type of affirmative action intended to ensure minority representation and that initiatives are being made to reach a consensus among religious minorities on this matter. However, detractors claimed that under this system, Muslim candidates were no longer compelled to pay attention to minorities. The leader of the Hindu community Sudham Chand protested the system but was killed. Pakistan did away with this method in 1999.

By abolishing separate electorates for Muslims and non-Muslims, Hindus and other minorities scored a rare political success in 2002. Non-Muslims were marginalised under the distinct electorate system since they were given insufficient representation in the assemblies. In December 2000, the Pakistan Hindu Welfare Association organised a national meeting to address the issue. Moreover, in 2001, Ahmadis, Christians, and Hindus were successful in partially boycotting the polls, which led to the elimination of the distinct electorate system in 2002. As a result, religious minorities were no longer limited to voting for minority seats in the National and Provincial assemblies, but now had the opportunity to vote for seats in the mainstream. Hindus continue to be largely disenfranchised despite the triumph.[17]

Not all Hindus have the same opinion about their rights in Pakistan, there are Pakistani Hindus who are satisfied with Muslim communities. For instance;

 A large part of the Hindu population migrated to India after Pakistan came into being, but those who stayed here are happy and prosperous,” Mr Chawla said, keen to stress the harmonious relationship between the Muslim majority and Hindu minority. “I am thankful to the Muslim community of Pakistan, which fully supports us on all occasions. We follow the law and we are supported by the government.”[18]

Cultural Challenges

In contrast to the rest of the Muslim-dominated nation, Sindh province in Pakistan boasts a long history and culture of Hinduism. Despite the fact that Pakistan’s terrain, and particularly Sindh’s, has a Hindu influence, discrimination is on the rise.

According to Zahida Rehman Jatt, a lecturer in anthropology and social sciences at the University of Sindh, there has been an increase in the marginalisation and discrimination of the Hindu community of Pakistan, as a result of the nation’s developing fundamentalism and extremism. She warned that this intolerance runs the risk of severing Pakistan’s links to its Hindu past. It’s regrettable since [Hindus] have made a significant contribution to Pakistan, she remarked. The majority of Pakistanis are ignorant of the value of their Hindu history or the contributions that Hindus and Sikhs have made to improving Pakistani culture.[19]

She cited Hyderabad’s Kundan Mal Girls’ School as an example of a Hindu-founded organisation whose name was altered after Pakistan was established. The Hindu philanthropist Saith Kundan Mal created it in 1914, but it is currently known as Jamia Arabia Girls School. She claimed that such shifts are among the causes of Pakistanis’ ignorance of the contributions of smaller faiths. A red brick college and two hospitals in the city of Shikarpur, some 35 kilometres (22 miles) from Sukkur, still bear the names of their Hindu patrons.

A Hindu temple in Lahore was demolished in 2006 to make room for the development of a tall commercial structure. Reporters from the Pakistan-based newspaper Dawn attempted to chronicle the story but were confronted by the property developer’s goons who disputed that there was ever a Hindu temple there.[20]

Forced Conversions of Hindu Girls

Pakistan Hindu Council protests against the forcible conversion of Hindu girls.

One of the main problems the Hindu minority in Pakistan has to deal with is the forced conversion of young Hindu girls to Islam; the highest estimate puts the number of such conversions at up to 1,000 per year. Usually, males hunting for brides or complicit friends and family members kidnap the girls. The authorities sometimes turn a blind eye when their farmhand parents’ debts are collected from them by strong landowners.

In one instance, a landlord kidnapped a farm worker’s Hindu daughter under the false pretence that the teen was paying for a $1,000 debt the family allegedly owed him.[21] Religious organisations and individuals who support forced conversions are known to have the backing and protection of Sindh’s ruling political parties, such as Abdul Haq (Mitthu Mian), a politician and the caretaker of the Bharachundi Sharif Dargah in the district of Ghotki, and Pir Ayub Jan Sirhindi, the caretaker of the Dargah pir sarhandi in the district of Umerkot.

According to the Pakistan Hindu Council (PHC) and the National Commission of Justice and Peace, about 1000 non-Muslim minority women are forcibly converted to Islam before being forced into marriage. In the Sindh districts of Tharparkar, Umerkot, and Mirpur Khas, reports of this practice are increasing.[22]

Religious Persecution

Hinduism, Buddhism, and Sikhism have historically declined in several parts of Pakistan. While these religions have continued to thrive outside of Pakistan’s eastern borders, a number of factors led to this. During the reign of the Delhi Sultanate and later the Mughal Empire, the region’s population shifted towards Islam. Though largely credited to the activities of the Sufis, religious conversion was typically a slow process. Some people converted to Islam for tax benefits, land grants, potential spouses, social and economic development, or escape from slavery, while others were forced to do so.

The Muslim League and India’s Partition were backed by the area’s predominately Muslim population. Minority Sikhs and Hindus migrated to India when Pakistan gained its independence in 1947, while Muslim refugees from India migrated to Pakistan. Although 6.5 million Muslims settled in Pakistan, some 4.7 million Hindus and Sikhs migrated to India.

Many Hindus in Pakistan have kept moving to India because they believe they are treated unfairly and as second-class citizens. Data from Pakistan’s Human Rights Commission indicates that about 1,000 Hindu families left Pakistan for India in 2013. At the National Assembly of Pakistan in May 2014, Dr Ramesh Kumar Vankwani, a member of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), revealed that 5,000 Hindus leave Pakistan each year for India.[23]

Three years after taking office, Jogendranath Mandal, Pakistan’s first minister of law and labour, resigned and moved to India, blaming the bureaucracy’s anti-Hindu prejudice. According to him, Pakistan is not a nation where Hindus should reside, and the threat of conversion or liquidation hangs over their destiny.

With the destruction of the Babri Mosque, widespread violence against Hindus broke out. In Sukkur, Sindh, shops owned by Hindus were also attacked. In Quetta, there were also attacks on Hindu homes and temples.[24]

The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has designated Pakistan as a “Country of Particular Concern” for committing or tolerating “systematic, ongoing, egregious violations of religious freedom” despite the fact that religious discrimination is still pervasive throughout the nation.[25]

Education Accessibility Issues

Hindus living in Pakistan face extreme challenges when it comes to accessing education. The Hindu population of Pakistan, estimated at 2 million people, have suffered from social discrimination and religious persecution for centuries and are now grappling with inadequate educational opportunities.
In recent years, access to education has become increasingly difficult for Hindus living in the country. Schools and universities are often located in far-off places which makes it hard for them to get an education. Additionally, there is a lack of resources due to the lack of representation from Hindu communities within state-funded educational institutions. Furthermore, discriminatory attitudes towards Hindus in many parts of the country limit their options further and prevent them from obtaining the same quality education as their fellow Muslim citizens.

The Indian government is attempting to address these issues by providing scholarships and other financial assistance programs to help improve access to higher education for Hindus living in Pakistan.

Dalit Hindus of Pakistan

The bulk of Hindus in Sindh are frequently “Dalits,” working as menial labourers (scavengers, sweepers, etc.) who other Pakistanis consider to be beneath them. Dalits, who make up 85% of all Hindus, are the minority group with the greatest vulnerability. A million of them reside in the formerly Mirpurkhas “division,” including over 350,000 in the incredibly dry Tharparkar area. They are forcibly removed from the property they reside on, transported, and made to labour without being paid properly. Political activists among them are the targets of fictitious criminal charges. The police frequently dismiss their accusations about the abuse of their wives. Even the wealthier Hindus, however, are not safe from harm. They feel free to be derided, humiliated, intimidated, and blackmailed by the majority community. Many wealthy Hindus (lawyers, businessmen, physicians) have been abducted for ransom in recent years. Several of them have been forced to pay extortionate demands. The general public is believed to be betraying the nation. In retribution for the 1992 destruction of the Babri Mosque in Ayodhya, Hindu temples were damaged in Pakistan. Individual Hindus may be charged within the broad ambit provided by the nation’s odious Blasphemy Laws if no other defence is available.[26]

Recommendations

• Everyone who believes in equality, fairness, religious freedom, and human rights should be concerned about the forced conversion of minority Hindu girls and women to Islam in Pakistan. Restoring minorities’ faith in the legal system and the administration is urgently necessary.
• Severe action should be taken against the different religious groups known to support crimes against Hindu women and girls, including the madrassas’ illegal actors (colleges for Islamic instruction).
• To enable Hindu students at educational institutions who encounter discrimination on the basis of their religion to report this prejudice and for action to be taken, there must be efficient complaint processes in place.
• Make ensuring that all national laws and regulations adhere to Pakistan’s commitments under the International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Hindus of Pakistan
• It is necessary to approve and ratify the Criminal Law (Protection of Minorities) Bill in order to stop coercive religious conversions and forced unions.

Conclusion

• In conclusion, Hindus of Pakistan face numerous challenges and issues in achieving the same level of security, safety and protection that is enjoyed by other religious minorities in the country.
• The population continues to decline due to forced conversions, abductions, marriages and a lack of employment opportunities for members of the community.
• These issues have been compounded by various other societal and political pressures that are experienced by Hindus living in Pakistan.
• There is silence surrounding violence against women and girls. Gender-based violence affects Hindu women in both their communities and the larger community. This encompasses many forms of interpersonal violence committed against individuals by their peers, intimate partners, neighbours, and strangers, as well as by their community and the standards it upholds. Women are prevented from reporting the violence they encounter and from seeking justice because they are afraid of further marginalisation within their communities.
• Religious minorities confront discrimination in a variety of spheres of life as well as numerous, serious issues in society. They encounter bigotry and discrimination everywhere, whether it be in the media, educational possibilities, legal provisions, work chances, or religious freedom. Their lives in the nation are, in short, marked by a variety of problems. As a result, urgent action must be taken to address their issues in order to promote social cohesion and enable their involvement in society.

 

References

‘5,000 Hindus Migrating to India Every Year, NA Told – Pakistan – DAWN.COM’. Accessed 1 March 2023. https://www.dawn.com/news/1105830.

‘Another Temple Is No More – Newspaper – DAWN.COM’. Accessed 1 March 2023. https://www.dawn.com/news/194343/another-temple-is-no-more.

Avari, Burjor. Islamic Civilization in South Asia: A History of Muslim Power and Presence in the Indian Subcontinent. Routledge, 2013.

Chandra, Satish. Medieval India: From Sultanat to the Mughals Part – II. Har-Anand Publications, 2005.

‘Forced Conversions of Pakistani Hindu Girls – Daily Times’. Accessed 1 March 2023. https://dailytimes.com.pk/116289/forced-conversions-of-pakistani-hindu-girls/.

Fuchs, Maria-Magdalena, and Simon Wolfgang Fuchs. ‘Religious Minorities in Pakistan: Identities, Citizenship and Social Belonging’. South Asia: Journal of South Asian Studies 43, no. 1 (2 January 2020): 52–67. doi:10.1080/00856401.2020.1695075.

Gordon, A. D. D., and Sandy Gordon. India’s Rise as an Asian Power: Nation, Neighborhood, and Region. Georgetown University Press, 2014.

Haidar, Suhasini. ‘Tattooed “Blue-Skinned” Hindu Pushtuns Look Back at Their Roots’. The Hindu, 3 February 2018, sec. India. https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/tattooed-blue-skinned-hindu-pushtuns-look-back-at-their-roots/article22645932.ece.

Minority Rights Group. ‘Hindus’, 19 June 2015. https://minorityrights.org/minorities/hindus-2/.

‘Hindus Feel the Heat in Pakistan’, 2 March 2007. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/6367773.stm.

Christian Science Monitor. ‘In Pakistan, Hindu Culture Perseveres despite Discrimination’. Accessed 1 March 2023. https://www.csmonitor.com/World/Asia-South-Central/2022/1107/In-Pakistan-Hindu-culture-perseveres-despite-discrimination.

India, Siromaạni gurudvārā prabandhak committee, Amritsar, and Shromaṇī Guraduārā Prabandhaka Kameṭī. Muslim League Attack on Sikhs and Hindus in the Punjab, 1947. Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee, 1950.

Junaidi, Ikram. ‘JUI-F Lawmaker Suggests Abolition of Reserved Seats for Minorities’. DAWN.COM, 07:08:30+05:00. https://www.dawn.com/news/1473511.

PakVoter. ‘Minorities in the Electoral Process’, 22 June 2018. https://pakvoter.org/minorities-in-the-electoral-process/.

‘Mob Attacks and Sets Fire to Hindu Temple in Pakistan | News | Al Jazeera’. Accessed 1 March 2023. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/12/30/mob-attacks-and-sets-fire-to-hindu-temple-in-pakistan.

‘Pakistani Hindus Lose Daughters to Forced Muslim Marriages’. Accessed 1 March 2023. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2017/02/15/pakistani-hindus-lose-daughters-forced-muslim-marriages/97013614/.

‘PAKISTANIS ATTACK 30 HINDU TEMPLES – The New York Times’. Accessed 1 March 2023. https://www.nytimes.com/1992/12/08/world/pakistanis-attack-30-hindu-temples.html?sec=&spon=.

Patel, Shaista Abdul Aziz. ‘It Is Time to Talk about Caste in Pakistan and Pakistani Diaspora’. Accessed 12 February 2023. https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2020/12/15/it-is-time-to-talk-about-caste-in-pakistan-and-pakistani-diaspora.

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Singh, Ranbir. ‘Persecution and Discrimination of Hindus in Pakistan’, n.d.

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[1] Maria-Magdalena Fuchs and Simon Wolfgang Fuchs, ‘Religious Minorities in Pakistan: Identities, Citizenship and Social Belonging’, South Asia: Journal of South Asian Studies 43, no. 1 (2 January 2020): 52–67, doi:10.1080/00856401.2020.1695075.

[2] ‘Hindus Feel the Heat in Pakistan’, 2 March 2007, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/6367773.stm.

[3] Burjor Avari, Islamic Civilization in South Asia: A History of Muslim Power and Presence in the Indian Subcontinent (Routledge, 2013), 86.

[4] ‘Rigveda | Definition & Facts | Britannica’, accessed 1 March 2023, https://www.britannica.com/topic/Rigveda.

[5] A. D. D. Gordon and Sandy Gordon, India’s Rise as an Asian Power: Nation, Neighborhood, and Region (Georgetown University Press, 2014), 7.

[6] André Wink, Al-Hind the Making of the Indo-Islamic World: The Slave Kings and the Islamic Conquest : 11Th-13th Centuries (BRILL, 1990), 152.

[7] Satish Chandra, Medieval India: From Sultanat to the Mughals Part – II (Har-Anand Publications, 2005), 365.

[8] Vazira Fazila-Yacoobali Zamindar, The Long Partition and the Making of Modern South Asia: Refugees, Boundaries, Histories(Columbia University Press, 2010), 40.

[9] ‘The Connection between Tamils and Pakistan – DTNext.In’, accessed 1 March 2023, https://web.archive.org/web/20181111173503/https://www.dtnext.in/News/TamilNadu/2017/11/26020433/1053435/The-connection-between-Tamils-and-Pakistan.vpf.

[10] ‘Struggling to Revive Gurmukhi’, Daily Times, 18 October 2016, https://dailytimes.com.pk/51488/struggling-to-revive-gurmukhi/.

[11] Shaista Abdul Aziz Patel, ‘It Is Time to Talk about Caste in Pakistan and Pakistani Diaspora’, accessed 12 February 2023, https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2020/12/15/it-is-time-to-talk-about-caste-in-pakistan-and-pakistani-diaspora.

[12] Suhasini Haidar, ‘Tattooed “Blue-Skinned” Hindu Pushtuns Look Back at Their Roots’, The Hindu, 3 February 2018, sec. India, https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/tattooed-blue-skinned-hindu-pushtuns-look-back-at-their-roots/article22645932.ece.

[13] Siromaạni gurudvārā prabandhak committee India Amritsar and Shromaṇī Guraduārā Prabandhaka Kameṭī, Muslim League Attack on Sikhs and Hindus in the Punjab, 1947 (Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee, 1950).

[14] ‘Hindus’, Minority Rights Group, 19 June 2015, https://minorityrights.org/minorities/hindus-2/.

[15] ‘Minorities in the Electoral Process’, PakVoter, 22 June 2018, https://pakvoter.org/minorities-in-the-electoral-process/.

[16] Ikram Junaidi, ‘JUI-F Lawmaker Suggests Abolition of Reserved Seats for Minorities’, DAWN.COM, 07:08:30+05:00, https://www.dawn.com/news/1473511.

[17] ‘Hindus Feel the Heat in Pakistan’.

[18] ‘In Pakistan, Hindu Culture Perseveres despite Discrimination’, Christian Science Monitor, accessed 1 March 2023, https://www.csmonitor.com/World/Asia-South-Central/2022/1107/In-Pakistan-Hindu-culture-perseveres-despite-discrimination.

[19] Ibid.

[20] ‘Another Temple Is No More – Newspaper – DAWN.COM’, accessed 1 March 2023, https://www.dawn.com/news/194343/another-temple-is-no-more.

[21] ‘Pakistani Hindus Lose Daughters to Forced Muslim Marriages’, accessed 1 March 2023, https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2017/02/15/pakistani-hindus-lose-daughters-forced-muslim-marriages/97013614/.

[22] ‘Forced Conversions of Pakistani Hindu Girls – Daily Times’, accessed 1 March 2023, https://dailytimes.com.pk/116289/forced-conversions-of-pakistani-hindu-girls/.

[23] ‘5,000 Hindus Migrating to India Every Year, NA Told – Pakistan – DAWN.COM’, accessed 1 March 2023, https://www.dawn.com/news/1105830.

[24] ‘PAKISTANIS ATTACK 30 HINDU TEMPLES – The New York Times’, accessed 1 March 2023, https://www.nytimes.com/1992/12/08/world/pakistanis-attack-30-hindu-temples.html?sec=&spon=.

[25] ‘Mob Attacks and Sets Fire to Hindu Temple in Pakistan | News | Al Jazeera’, accessed 1 March 2023, https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/12/30/mob-attacks-and-sets-fire-to-hindu-temple-in-pakistan.

[26] Ranbir Singh, ‘Persecution and Discrimination of Hindus in Pakistan’, n.d.