Agencies/Islamabad

Hundreds of angry people attacked a Hindu temple and set it on fire in southern Pakistan overnight following a rumour that a member of the Hindu community had desecrated the Qur’an, police and community leaders said yesterday.
The incident took place just before midnight on Saturday after locals in Larkana district alleged that Sangeet Kumar, 42, had torn out pages of the holy book and tossed them down on the street from the roof of his home.
“Our Dharamshala (community centre) has been gutted and the temple has been partially damaged. All the statues have been destroyed by the attackers,” Kalpana Devi, chairperson of the local Hindu committee, said.
Hundreds of students from local Islamic seminaries attacked the temple holding batons, one witness, Javed Shah, said. Police arrived quickly to protect Kumar from the angry crowd.
“They acted smartly and took him out after making him put on a police uniform to save him from the wrath of the crowd,” said Shah.
“It took nearly 20 minutes to break down the doors (of the temple) before they entered the compound and set it on fire. They also set fire to the temple before ransacking it.”
Larkana is the home town of opposition leader Bilawal Bhutto Zardari who is the son of assassinated former prime minister Benazir Bhutto.
Sindh province, where the attack took place, is home to most of Pakistan’s small Hindu community which numbers about 2mn among a population of about 180mn.
Pakistan’s rocky relationship with neighbouring India, a predominantly Hindu country, has fed tension between the two communities in smaller towns but outright acts of violence are rare.
Police said they were investigating the matter.
“The situation is not satisfactory,” Deputy Inspector General of Larkana, Khadim Rind, said. “Sanjeet Kumar has been accused of desecrating the holy book by the locals. The accused is in our custody.”
Another senior police official said two Muslims had been arrested for their part in the violence.
Reacting to the attack, Zardari tweeted: “I consider attack on temple akin to attack on GKB (Garhi Khuda Baksh).perpetrators will b brought 2 justice as will people who spread lies and incited violence.”
Garhi Khuda Baksh is a village which houses the Bhutto family mausoleum.
The Hindu Panchayat Council, a representative body of Hindu minorities, has appealed on Hindus to keep a low profile while celebrating the ongoing Holi festival of colours.
The incident also had repercussions in the southwestern province of Balochistan, where protesters angry at the alleged blasphemy in Larkana clashed with police in the towns of Osta Muhammad and Dera Murad Jamali.
Two protesters and one policeman were injured during the clashes in Osta Mohanmed, while four shops owned by Hindus were set ablaze, senior local police official Syed Ashfaq Shah said.
Pakistan’s Geo television reported mobs were also threatening Hindus in other parts of the province.
Paramilitary rangers were called in by the government to control the situation, said Sharjeel Memon, information minister for Sindh province.