A group of 250 Hindu devotees from India, the UAE and the US are scheduled to visit a century-old shrine of Paramhans Ji Maharaaj in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province which was vandalised by radical Islamist outfit Jamiat Ulema Islam-Fazl on December 30 last year.
The temple is dedicated to a saint Shri Param Hans Dayal Ji Maharaj who was laid to rest in 1919 at Teri village in Karak district. A temple was constructed here in 1920.
Pakistani newspaper Dawn has said that Pakistan Hindu Council (PHC) has invited Hindus across the globe to encourage “faith tourism”. PHC representing Hindu minorities in Pakistan is headed by Dr Ramesh Kumar Vankwani who is also a member of the National Assembly of Pakistan.
According to the report, Hindu devotees will arrive in Peshawar on January 1 from where they will carry onward journey to Teri village. PHC has arranged the programme in collaboration with Pakistan International Airlines.
Earlier in November as many as 54 Hindus from India, Canada, Singapore, Australia, and Spain had paid a visit to the Teri temple. They were led by Shri Satguru Ji Maharaaj Ji, the fifth successor of Paramhans Ji Maharaaj.
Hindu council celebrated Diwali at shrine with Chief Justice of Pakistan
On November 8 PHC had organized a function to celebrate Diwali at this century-old shrine. The outfit had invited Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Gulzar Ahmad to participate in the Diwali as part of thanksgiving. This was the first-ever celebration at this temple after it was vandalised by Islamists and renovated on the order of the court.
Temple restored on the order of the court
On December 30th last year, the temple was vandalised by a mob led by local clerics belonging to the Jamiat Ulema Islam-Fazl. On the orders of the Chief Justice of Pakistan, the Teri temple was restored to its original condition.
A three-judge SC bench, headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan Gulzar Ahmed, had also ordered the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government to recover Rs 33 million from 123 identified accused when Advocate General for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Shumail Butt said that Rs 33 million (USD 1,94,161) was spent on restoration of the temple.
However, Islamists had forced Hindus in Pakistan to pay their fine and the PHC had paid fine for 11 Muslim clerics in the name of the ‘goodwill gesture’ to increase interfaith harmony between the Hindu and Muslim communities. The remaining accused also started pressurizing Hindus to cough up their fine.
Earlier in 1997, the shrine was first attacked and severely damaged. PHC had approached the Supreme court in 2015 seeking help to restore the holy place and restart the annual pilgrimage to the place.
