Attack carried out by an extremist of the Tehreek-e-Labbaik, the Islamist party banned by the Pakistani government in April this year. Ranjit Singh was one of the protagonists of the Great Game in Asia: he repelled the Afghan invasions from Punjab and established friendly relations with the British. The Minority Rights Group: 'We must accept the facts of history and preserve them'.
Lahore (AsiaNews) - The consequences of the Taliban reconquest in Afghanistan are already being felt in neighboring countries. Yesterday in Pakistan a right-wing Muslim extremist damaged the statue of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the Sikh ruler who in the first half of the 19th century repelled the invasions of the Afghans from Punjab. The vandal, who was immediately arrested, is an activist of the Tehreek-e-Labbaik, an Islamic party that Pakistan's government banned in April following violent protests.
The statue is located in the Lahore Fort (a UNESCO World Heritage site) and had been erected in 2019 to mark the 180th anniversary of the death of the Sikh emperor who was among the key players in the Great Game between England and Russia. He is also known as Sher-e-Punjab or "Lion of the Punjab," a region he unified and ruled until 1839. The sculpture was made of bronze and shows the ruler in Sikh dress on horseback and with a drawn sword.
In videos circulated on social media, the vandal can be seen climbing over the fence, ripping an arm from the statue and then knocking Ranjit Singh's bust off his horse (video).
The "Lion of the Punjab" defeated the invaders from Afghanistan and before dying helped the British to put back on the throne of Kabul Shujah Shah, his ally and ruler of the Durrani dynasty from whom he received the famous Koh-i Noor diamond. The events will lead to the first Anglo-Afghan war fought between 1839 and 1842.
This is not the first time the statue has been damaged. In 2020, another extremist had broken an arm of the sculpture and was arrested.
Fawad Chaudhary, the Minister of Information, condemned the vandalism, saying that "such illiterates are really harmful" to Pakistan's image internationally.
Shahbaz Gill, spokesman for the prime minister, said in a tweet that the incident "is a symptom of a sick mindset" and an "attempt to undermine Pakistan's reputation."
"The state has a responsibility to ensure citizens can live in diversity," said Naumana Suleiman, Minority Rights Group's South Asia coordinator. "These events remind us that a lot of work is still needed on the educational level. We need to accept the facts of history and preserve them."