India on Sunday raised with Pakistan an incident of alleged abduction of two Hindu teenaged girls and their forcible conversion in Sindh province even as a war of words broke out between External Affairs Minister SushmaSwaraj and Pakistan’s Information Minister Fawad Chaudhary over the issue.
Official sources said India issued a note verbale — adiplomatic communication — to Pakistan, sharing its concerns over the incidentand called for suitable remedial action to protect and promote safety, securityand welfare of people from the minority communities.
In a tweet, Swaraj said she has sought a report from Indianenvoy in Pakistan Ajay Bisaria on the incident. Pakistan Prime Minister ImranKhan has already ordered a probe into it.
According to Pakistani media reports, Reena and Raveena,hailing from village Hafiz Salman near the town of Daharki in Sindh, were”kidnapped and forced to convert from Hinduism on March 20, before beingmarried to Muslim men. “
Separately, there were Pakistani media reports of abductionand forced conversion of another minor Hindu girl, Shania from Mirpurkhas inSindh, sources said. Both girls have been taken to Rahim Yar Khan in Punjab toavoid their arrest by Sindh Police, they said quoting latest reports.
Responding to Swaraj’s tweet asking the Indian envoy to senda report on the incident, Pakistan’s Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry said:”Maam its Pakistan’s internal issue and (be) rest assured it’s not Modi’s Indiawhere minorities are subjugated, it’s Imran Khan’s Naya Pak where white colourof our flag is equally dearer to us.”
“I hope you’ll act with same diligence when it comes torights of Indian minorities,” he said. Swaraj, in her response to Chaudhry,said she had only asked for a report from the Indian High Commissioner inIslamabad about the kidnapping and forced conversion of two minor Hindu girlsto Islam.
“This was enough tomake you jittery. This only shows your guilty conscience,” she said.
This prompted Chaudhry to respond again. “Madam Minister I am happy that in the Indian administration we have people who care for minority rights in other countries. I sincerely hope that your conscience will allow you to stand up for minorities at home as well. Gujarat and Jammu must weigh heavily on your soul,” the Pakistani minister tweeted.