January 15, 2024
By Xari Jalil
LAHORE
A report released by the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) shows that there are multiple reasons, including religious discrimination, security concerns, and economic hardship, that Hindus living in Sindh have been increasingly migrating. The study examines the motivations and experiences of Hindu migrants, focusing on the voices of community members. Key findings reveal the unique challenges faced by Hindu women and the urgent need for policy interventions to address the root causes of this migration.
In particular the report explores the deteriorating law and order situation, religiously motivated violence and the erosion of sociocultural norms in Sindh. It also underscores the unique vulnerabilities that Hindu women face, which are often overlooked in such discourse. By unpacking these complexities, the study sheds light on contemporary migration patterns among the Hindu community in Sindh, looking at factors influencing their decision to migrate and offering valuable insights for policymakers and human rights advocates.
Sindh’s Hindu population
The 2023 census shows Pakistan’s population as 240.5 million, of which 96.4 percent are Muslim. The Hindu community is the largest religious minority in Pakistan, with a population of 5.2 million, followed by 3.3 million Christians.
The Hindu community has been further classified into the Hindu Jati – 1.6 percent of the population, and Scheduled Castes – 0.6 percent. However these are only official numbers and actual numbers is likely underreported, especially because of discrimination.
Despite being the highest in number in Sindh, they face significant socioeconomic and caste discrimination within the province. Caste Hindus engage primarily in trade and are concentrated in urban districts such as Jacobabad, Shikarpur, Ghotki, and Kashmore.
They generally enjoy higher living standards and literacy rates than their Scheduled Caste counterparts. Scheduled Caste Hindus live predominantly in the rural areas of Tharparkar, Umerkot and Mirpurkhas. They often work as haris [agricultural labourers] and are vulnerable to exploitation in the form of bonded labour despite its official prohibition since 1992.
In 2014, a Hindu parliamentarian disclosed on the floor of the parliament that around 5,000 Hindus annually migrate to India due to security concerns, because of law and order situation. According to a recent press report, more than 300 Hindus from Kashmore district have migrated to India due to lawlessness and fears of kidnapping by bandits, said the HRCP report, but this news is usually downplayed and framed as ‘conspiracy’ against Pakistan. Field research shows that Hindu community have been migrating from Pakistan, with many relocating to India. This trend is not new. However, determining the exact number or scale of this migration is challenging.
REASONS OF MIGRATION
Hindu community leaders say that migration to India is not a recent development.
One of the pivotal moments cited by these leaders is the demolition of the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya, India, on 6 December 1992. This incident provoked widespread anti-Hindu violence in Pakistan, with attacks on Hindu temples and places of worship by the Muslim population. This surge of violence in response to events in India became a huge reason for Hindus forced to leave Pakistan in fear of being targets of violence.
Even further back, in 1986, as many as 34 convicted prisoners, some of them infamous for kidnapping Hindu traders for ransom in northern Sindh, escaped from Sukkur Jail. This jailbreak created fear among Hindu traders and many emigrated.
CURRENT REASONS
Persistent fear and insecurity
In 2023, an HRCP fact-finding report observed that northern Sindh was riddled with organized crime, militant violence, poor governance, and entrenched feudal power structures. Along with this there are significant shortcomings in the police, judicial, and revenue systems, presenting formidable challenges to maintaining law and order. Tribal feuds further destabilize the region, paralysing socioeconomic development and creating a perilous environment for all residents, particularly for the Hindu minority.
Kidnapping for ransom
Kidnapping for ransom is rampant in northern Sindh, and extortion is commonplace. This law and order situation presents a grim reality for the Hindu community as it feels insecure due to these kidnappings. In districts such as Ghotki, Jacobabad and Kashmore, the upper-caste Hindu community dominates trade, markets and transportation. They are also significant landowners, making them prime targets for criminal activities.
Although religious violence is significant, it is not the sole motivator for the crimes they face.
Hindus are not targeted solely because of their beliefs but because of their wealth and business interests. Violence and crime against the Hindu community peaked in 2014. A subsequent law enforcement crackdown against dacoits in the Katcha area temporarily reduced kidnappings and general crime in the northern districts. However, in recent years, kidnappings for ransom by bandits have surged again.
The bandits have precise information about the Hindu target’s wealth, businesses, and family members. One notable incident occurred in January this year when Retak Kumar, a Hindu trader from Mirpur Mathelo in Ghotki, was kidnapped by bandits. While the Ghotki police claimed Kumar was rescued after 44 days, community leaders disclosed that his family had paid a substantial ransom for his release.
In September 2023, dacoits from the Katcha area kidnapped three Hindu community members, including a nine-year-old, from Kashmore, and held them for several days for ransom.
In many cases, kidnappings for ransom are not reported in the media. Often, Hindu community leaders negotiate through local tribal chieftains to secure the release of their loved ones, typically paying ransoms ranging from PKR5 million to PKR10 million.
The role of tribal chieftains
The kidnappings and ransom demands highlight the systemic issues faced by the Hindu community in northern Sindh. The failure of law enforcement to provide adequate protection leaves them vulnerable to exploitation by criminal gangs. Their relative wealth and the lack of government protection make them easy targets for bandits and tribal chieftains. The prevailing feudal system exacerbates their plight, often leaving the Hindu community with little recourse.
Tribal chieftains wield significant power, frequently influencing law enforcement and judicial processes. This entrenched power dynamic forces many Hindus to seek protection through alternative means.
To safeguard themselves and their families, many Hindus align with powerful tribal and influential leaders, involving them as business partners. However, these silent partners do not invest financially but receive a significant share—typically between 20 and 30 percent—of the profits. Their names are prominently displayed in mills, shops, transport companies, and other enterprises to deter bandit activity.
A certain amount is paid to these tribal chieftains at the end of the year. Hindu businessmen say that they also display their names on their businesses to protect themselves from dacoits.
The fear and uncertainty extend beyond northern Sindh, spilling over into cities like Sukkur, Karachi, and Hyderabad.
Fear from backlash related to India
The Hindu community in Sindh faces increasing anxiety, particularly in response to events connected to India.
In 2023, an incident involving Seema Haider, a Pakistani woman from Sindh who travelled to India to marry a Hindu man, triggered a wave of threats and violence that deeply unsettled the Hindu community in northern Sindh. Following her departure, bandits from northern Sindh threatened to attack Hindu temples in retaliation, causing widespread panic among the local Hindu population. Media reports indicate that dacoits in Kashmore and Ghotki districts allegedly took several Hindu community members hostage, including women and children. This alarming situation drew attention in the provincial assembly when members were informed that a rocket had been fired at a temple in the Ghauspur area of Kashmore. Fortunately, the rocket did not explode, and no casualties were reported, but the incident intensified the community’s fear and insecurity.
These anxieties were heightened when Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi consecrated a temple in Ayodhya in 2024 on a disputed site previously occupied by the Babri mosque. A Pakistani Hindu politician remarked, ‘Incidents linked with India always cause panic among the Hindu community, even though they have nothing to do with India and are Pakistani citizens.’
The wave of terrorism
The Hindu minority in northern Sindh has been feeling a growing sense of insecurity during the wave of terrorism from 2013 to 2017.
This period saw a surge in suicide attacks by a local militant group led by Hafeez Pandrani, linked to transnational groups such as the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and later the Islamic State. These incidents, including suicide bombings at Shia shrines as well as attacks on a Barelvi spiritual leader and a Shia politician, spread fear among religious minorities.
Though Pandrani was killed by law enforcement agencies in 2019, the trauma continued. Many Hindu families migrated to Karachi and Hyderabad, while others crossed the border to India.
Blasphemy accusations-linked violence
Blasphemy accusations are a major source of distress for religious minorities in northern Sindh. Often unfounded and driven by personal vendettas, such allegations can swiftly escalate into mob violence.
Ghotki district has been a focal point for such tensions, with several high-profile cases emerging in recent years. One notable incident occurred in September 2019 when a Hindu teacher, Notan Lal, was accused of blasphemy. This accusation led to widespread unrest, with a mob vandalising a school owned by a Hindu resident and a nearby temple. Police were notably absent in preventing the violence. Lal was detained and jailed, but in March 2024, the Sindh High Court released him, citing insufficient evidence to support the charges.
This was not an isolated event. In 2016, the town of Mirpur Mathelo in Ghotki experienced a violent outbreak following alleged desecration of the Quran by a Hindu boy. The ensuing mob rampage resulted in the death of one Hindu man and severe injuries to another, with extensive damage to Hindu-owned businesses.
Pervasive fear drives Hindu parents to isolate their children from Muslim peers and strangers, hoping to shield them from potential violence. In the face of blasphemy accusations, some Hindus choose to leave Sindh altogether.
Fear and vulnerability for Hindu women
Hindu women in Sindh face constant threats of harassment, kidnapping and forced conversion, significantly impacting their lives. This pervasive fear often forces families to withdraw daughters from school and relocate to safer areas. To enhance security, many Hindu families live in close-knit communal compounds, which provide protection and solidarity but also highlight their isolation, driven by fear. The migration of Hindu families from rural areas such as Ghotki to larger cities or abroad reflects this anxiety.
Scheduled Caste Hindu women are especially vulnerable, given their lower socioeconomic status and limited social mobility, exacerbating their plight.
An activist from Panu Aqil recounted, ‘At a wedding, a tribal chieftain’s son inappropriately touched a Hindu bride, causing deep humiliation. Unable to retaliate, the family quietly moved to India within three months.’
Forced conversions and coerced marriages
Forced conversions and coerced marriages are a persistent issue in Sindh, with Ghotki again emerging as an epicentre. Numerous high-profile cases, such as that of Rinkle Kumari in 2012, have emerged from this region over the years, highlighting the systemic nature of the problem.
A 2019 HRCP fact-finding report titled ‘Forced conversions in Ghotki’ documents the anxieties of the Hindu community in detail.
Central to these allegations is Mian Abdul Haq, popularly known as ‘Mian Mithu’, a local politician and Muslim cleric. Mian Mithu stands accused of leveraging his influence to facilitate the forced conversions and marriages of underage Hindu girls. His seminary, Dargah Bharchundi Shareef in Daharki, Ghotki, is frequently cited as a key location where such abductions and conversions allegedly take place.
While Mian Mithu maintains that these conversions and marriages are voluntary, this claim is vehemently contested by Hindu community leaders. They argue that the girls, often minors, are too young to make such life-altering decisions and are pressured or manipulated into conversion. The complete absence of similar cases involving Hindu boys casts further doubt on the legitimacy of these conversions.
The Sindh Child Marriage Restraint Act 2013 sets the legal marriage age at 18, but enforcement remains weak. Perpetrators exploit loopholes by marrying girls off in Punjab, where the legal age is 16.
The case of Reena and Raveena exemplifies this, where despite their families’ pleas, the court ruled in favour of their Muslim husbands. Some respondents suggest that the families of converted girls refuse to take them back due to the associated stigma and potential repercussions. However, some Hindu leaders suggest a recent decline in conversion cases, attributing it to pressure from civil society and Hindu groups on Mian Mithu and his associates.
Conflicting views on conversions
Some upper-caste Hindu leaders in Sindh argue that the media exaggerates the frequency of forced conversions, which are reported to be in the hundreds annually.
A Hindu Panchayat leader from northern Sindh noted, ‘It’s not as if they come and kidnap our girls from homes or roads.’ He claimed that many cases involve underage Hindu girls who fall in love with Muslim boys, making conversion to Islam a necessary step for marriage. These young girls, often too immature to understand their faith, convert to a religion they scarcely comprehend. Another leader added that these girls usually realize the gravity of their actions too late, feeling trapped and unable to revert to Hinduism due to severe repercussions, including threats of death.
Alarmingly, some authorities, who should protect minors’ rights, defend the consent of underage girls in these situations. A police officer from Ghotki admitted that many converts were minors but argued that they were ‘genuinely attracted’ to Islam or Muslim men. Additionally, those overseeing the conversion process often deny Hindu families any chance to meet with their daughters beforehand, preventing discussions about the significant implications of conversion and the opportunity to reconsider their decision.
Human rights activists and journalists note that conversions are more prevalent among Scheduled Caste Hindus than upper-caste Hindus. The latter have resources and representation, enabling them to voice concerns more effectively. Scheduled Caste conversions, in contrast, receive less attention due to their limited influence. An activist from the Scheduled Caste community explained, ‘Uppercaste Hindus have money, resources, representation in parliament, and strong organisations like the Pakistan Hindu Council. They raise the issue at every forum, even in higher courts, when girls from their community convert to Islam, forcibly or willingly.’ Conversely, the conversion of Scheduled Caste women garners less attention due to their lack of media, parliamentary and civil society clout.
Consensual conversions
While forced conversions dominate headlines, consensual conversions, particularly among Scheduled Caste Hindus embracing Islam, largely go unnoticed. As Scheduled Caste Hindus face marginalisation from both Muslims and upper-caste Hindus, they are often denied basic social and religious rights.
Activists from the Scheduled Caste community in Karachi noted, ‘Unaffordable cremation costs prevent them from following traditional Hindu burial practices, and Muslim communities often reject their dead in graveyards.’
He cited a 2021 incident in Jacobabad’s Thull town, where a Muslim community barred Scheduled Caste Hindus from burying their dead in a shared graveyard.
Islamic organisations and individuals, recognising these vulnerabilities, offer conversion to Islam as a means to escape caste discrimination and improve socioeconomic conditions. Conversion to Islam is presented as an escape from the shackles of caste and a path to better life opportunities.
While exact numbers are elusive, community activities suggest hundreds of Scheduled Caste Hindus embrace Islam annually, seeking relief from their marginalized status. Islamic groups are notably active in these efforts. However, smaller initiatives by Christian, Sikh and Ahmadi missionaries also aim to attract converts from these vulnerable communities, offering them alternative pathways out of difficult circumstances.
Economic reasons
Many respondents cited ongoing economic hardship in Pakistan as one of the major factors driving the recent migration of Hindus businesses and flee to India for economic security. In Jacobabad, where Hindu traders traditionally dominate the main bazaars, some shopkeepers allege discriminatory practices by the electricity body, which issues inflated bills despite their consistent payment history. They see this as a deliberate tactic to exploit their peaceful nature.
Climate change
While economic hardship and violence are the most immediate and visible concerns driving Pakistani Hindus to migrate, another less discussed but increasingly critical factor is climate change. For some, the worsening climate conditions in Sindh, particularly in the northern region, are becoming a compelling reason to seek refuge in more hospitable environments such as India. Jacobabad, a northern Sindh city frequently cited as one of the world’s hottest, exemplifies the problem.
During late May, temperatures soared to a scorching 51 degrees Celsius. These are not just uncomfortable conditions, they are life-threatening. Daily survival becomes a struggle, especially with frequent power outages lasting 12 to 18 hours.
Climate change in Sindh goes beyond extreme heat. The region faces a cascading set of environmental challenges, including erratic rainfall patterns, frequent floods, and persistent droughts. These conditions severely disrupt agricultural productivity, a cornerstone of the local economy and a crucial source of livelihood for many, including the Hindu community.