NEW DELHI, Aug 13 (KUNA) -- India's main Opposition party the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday demanded of the country's Government to rehabilitate the hundreds of members of Hindu community who have arrived in India from Pakistan alleging mistreatment there.
Raising the matter in Parliament's Upper House 'Rajya Sabha' this afternoon, senior BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad said the Hindus coming from Pakistan should be treated as refugees as per the UN Conventions and that the Indian Government should take care of them.
He said that the situation arising out of arrival of the Pakistani Hindus was similar to in 1947 (Partition of Indian and Pakistan) when refugees had fled from both parts of divided India.
"The Hindu refugees have come here because they have been persecuted. Specially, women were under serious threat," Prasad said and added that there are well known UN conventions which talk about rehabilitation of refugees ... "the Indian government should rehabilitate them." Batches of Pakistani Hindus have been arriving in India over the past several months, and and many of them said that they would not return as the atmosphere prevailing in Pakistan was that of fear for them. They particularly allege that their daughters were being forcibly converted to Islam and thereafter married to Muslims.
Nearly 250 Pakistani Hindus had arrived in India last week. They were allowed to enter India after being detained on the Pakistan side for several hours and only allowed to proceed after they signed documents saying that they would return to Pakistan. As many as 33 Pakistani Hindus arrived in India on Monday.
Earlier, a group of around 100 Pakistani Hindus had arrived in New Delhi a few months back and started living in the open saying that they won't return to Pakistan as the environment there was 'hostile' towards them, particularly for their women. (end) py.sd KUNA 131906 Aug 12NNNN