Great gesture: Holi celebrations in Pakistan gets human shield

Islamabad: Pakistani students on Friday formed a human shield outside Swami Narayan Temple, Light House, in Karachi as people celebrated Holi at the grand temple, a day after Sindh University students from the Hindu community were stopped for celebrating the colourful festival. The National Student Federation showed solidarity with the minority community by forming the human chain.

“If the State cannot provide protection to minority communities, the public has to take a stand”, Central Organiser NSF Khurram Ali said.

Amid increasing cases of violence and lack of security against their community, many Hindu families from Balochistan and Sindh have decided to migrate to India. “Previously, members of minority communities used to come out and protest alone but with so much intolerance in the society, the general public needs to join minority communities”, Mr Khurram said.

“This way, all religious groups will stand united and show their dissent against the state”, he added.

Earlier, a bunch of students at the Sindh University (SU) were manhandled by private security guards after some teachers complained they were creating nuisance on the premises.

According to associate professor and philosophy department chairperson Amar Sindhu, a couple of students came to her and complained that they have been rough-ed up. One of the boys had his shirt torn, she said.

Initially under the impression that the students were stopped from celebrating Holi, Ms Sindhu called up the varsity’s security chief Ghulam Nabi Kaka.

“He told me that the guards received a complaint from some teachers of the arts faculty that a few boys are creating nuisance in the faculty’s garden”, she said.