The Foreign Office on Friday rejected claims of the Indian Ministry of External Affairs regarding a Hindu temple in Narowal as “false and politically motivated,” adding the neighboring country was “distorting facts and resorting to cheap gimmicks.”
Pakistan had earlier conveyed that an over-a-century-old temple in Siraj village had collapsed due to torrential rains in July. A minority rights group, however, alleged the structure was deliberately razed to facilitate the expansion of an adjoining madrassa. Picking up the contested report, the Indian Ministry of External Affairs had issued a statement urging the Government of Pakistan to conduct a prompt and transparent investigation, condemning what it called a “reprehensible act of vandalism.”
In its rejoinder, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Pakistan categorically rejected “the false and politically motivated assertions” made by India regarding the temple in Narowal. It said that contrary to the “false propaganda” being peddled by India, the temple’s structure was damaged on July 21 due to torrential rains.
“The local authorities have already surveyed the rain damage and initiated steps for the restoration of the building,” it said. “It is, therefore, shameful that India is distorting facts and resorting to cheap gimmicks,” it added.
The Foreign Office said the “deliberate distortion of facts” could not distract attention from India’s “abysmal record of systematic persecution of minorities and state-sponsored attacks against their places of worship.” It added: “The world is well aware of the weaponization of Hindutva ideology against minorities, and must hold the Indian leadership accountable for the persecution of Muslim, Sikh and Christian communities.”