Videos circulating on social media showed guys working with hammers to harm the temple walls as thick grey smoke rose up from the web-site.
The incident took location in a remote village in Karak district, some one hundred kilometres (60 miles) southeast of Peshawar, the capital of the northwestern province of Khyber Pakthunkhwa.
“A charged mob of some 1,000 to 1,200 people were incited by the local Muslim clerics to destroy the Hindu temple,” district police chief Irfanullah Khan told AFP.
Discrimination and violence against religious minorities is commonplace in Pakistan, exactly where Muslims make up 97 % of the population and Hindus just about two %.
Earlier this month, the United States placed Pakistan on a list of “countries of particular concern” for religious freedom violations.
Khan mentioned resentment towards the temple, which was not in standard use, has been brewing for years, especially immediately after current renovation work was carried out.
“The police have registered a case against some 20 people and with the help of videos, we will trace more culprits,” Khan added.
Kamran Bangash, the provincial info minister, also confirmed the attack and the veracity of the videos noticed on social media to AFP.
“We believe in freedom of religion and those who were involved will not be spared,” Bangash mentioned.
Local resident Sulaman Khattak told AFP that the crowd marched towards the temple immediately after they had been addressed by clerics.
“They were prepared, some were carrying hammers and jerry cans of oil with them”, Khattak told AFP.
Pakistan human rights minister Shireen Mazari mentioned the government has a duty to “ensure safety & security of all our citizens & their places of worship”.
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“This is not the first incident of its kind, unfortunately intolerance towards religious minorities has been growing in Pakistan for the last five years, with more frequent attacks on places of worship,”
-mentioned Hindu rights activist Kapil Dev.