Historic Hindu temple Demolished in Pakistan for Shopping Complex

A historical Hindu temple existing near the Pakistan-Afghanistan border has been demolished for the construction of a commercial complex.

As per reports, this temple in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province was closed since 1947, when the Hindus of the area migrated to India.

This temple also known as ‘Khyber Temple’ was situated in the border town of Landi Kotal Bazaar in the Khyber district. As per reports, the construction work for the shopping complex started at its spot around a fortnight back.

Interestingly, Pakistan officials claim that they are not aware of any temple existing in the area. But locals claim that there was a historical temple in the main Landi Kotal Bazaar. This temple was partially damaged by some clerics and seminarians in 1992 following the demolition of the Babri Masjid at Ayodhya in India.

Haroon Sarabdiyal of the Pakistan Hindu Mandir Management Committee insisted it was the responsibility of the district administration and relevant government departments to ensure the protection and rehabilitation of historical buildings of religious importance to non-Muslims.