Netizens on Saturday took to social media to extend their support to the Indian government for calling out Pakistan over recent alleged cases of abduction of minor girls belonging to that country’s Hindu community.
Most of them suggested that while reports of abductions taking place in Pakistan are not new, steps should be taken to expose Islamabad and take required action to prevent such incidents.
A senior Pakistani diplomat was summoned by India’s External Affairs Ministry on Friday and handed a strong note verbale (formal diplomatic communication) protesting the recent alleged abduction of minor Hindu girls, official sources in New Delhi said.
According to reports published by the media, three minor Hindu girls - Shanti Meghwad, Sarmi Meghwad, and Mehak were kidnapped from their homes in separate incidents on 14 and 15 January respectively. The first two girls hailed from Umar village in the Tharparkar district of Pakistan’s Sindh province, while the third Hindu girl was whisked away from her home in Jacobabad district, also in the same province.
Pakistan has been informed by India through diplomatic channels to ensure the safe return of these minor girls to their homes and families at the earliest.
New Delhi’s objections to the alleged kidnappings come against the backdrop of it having poor bilateral relations with Islamabad ever since the former revoked the special quasi-autonomous territorial status of Jammu and Kashmir in August last year through an act of parliament and subsequently creating two federal government-administered union territories – Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh – in October.
Relations between India and Pakistan have traditionally been tense over competing claims to parts of the Kashmir region since both nations gained independence from British colonial rule in 1947. The two countries have fought three wars over Kashmir, in 1948, 1965 and 1999 respectively.