Pakistan Rejects India’s Claims About Narowal Hindu Temple as ‘False and Politically Motivated’

Pakistan’s Foreign Office has rejected India’s claims about a Hindu temple in Narowal as “false and politically motivated,” accusing its neighbour of distorting facts and resorting to “cheap gimmicks.”

The government said the more than century-old temple in Siraj village collapsed after torrential rains. A minority rights group disputed that account, alleging that the structure had been deliberately demolished to make room for the expansion of an adjoining seminary.

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false and politically motivated assertions

India’s Ministry of External Affairs called for a prompt and transparent investigation. It condemned what it described as a “reprehensible act of vandalism.”

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reprehensible act of vandalism

In a statement posted on X, Pakistani Foreign Office spokesperson Sajjad Haider Khan said the temple had been damaged by torrential rains on July 21. He said local authorities had surveyed the damage and begun steps to restore the building.

“It is, therefore, shameful that India is distorting facts and resorting to cheap gimmicks,” Khan said. He also accused India of deliberately distorting the issue to distract from what he called its record of persecution and attacks on minority places of worship. Khan said the international community should hold India’s leadership accountable for what he described as the persecution of Muslim, Sikh and Christian communities.

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It is, therefore, shameful that India is distorting facts and resorting to cheap gimmicks.