Ranjit Singh's statue vandalised at Lahore Fort, India criticised

In Pakistan, a statue of the first Sikh ruler Maharaja Ranjit Singh was vandalized by  an activist of the banned Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) at the Lahore Fort. India has expressed concern over the incident with the Ministry of External Affairs describing it as “disturbing” and said such acts of violence against minorities are increasing at an alarming rate in Pakistan. MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said, “We have seen disturbing reports in the media about the vandalization of the statue of Maharaja Ranjit Singh in Lahore.This is the third such incident wherein the statue has been vandalized since it was unveiled in 2019.

Local police said the accused has been arrested and strict action will be taken against him. Pakistan’s minister for information and broadcasting Fawad Chaudhary called the act shameful and the vandal an illiterate, dangerous for the nation’s global image. 

#Shameful this bunch of illiterates are really dangerous for Pakistan image in the world https://t.co/TXoAXCQtWW

— Ch Fawad Hussain (@fawadchaudhry) August 17, 2021

Special assistant to Prime Minister Imran Khan on political communication Dr Shahbaz Gill said this was an attempt to undermine Pakistan’s assessment and were symptoms of a sick mindset. He said immediate action will be taken against the accused.