A 1,200-year-old temple in Lahore, Pakistan, will soon be restored. After the success of a long court battle, the residents living illegally in the temple have been evicted. The Evacuee Trust Property Board (ETPB), which oversees places of worship for Pakistan’s minority communities, took possession of the ancient Valmiki temple last month. The temple is located in the vicinity of the famous Anarkali Bazaar of Lahore. Apart from the Krishna temple in Lahore, this is the only temple open for devotees.
For the past two decades, the Christian family, which claims to have converted to Hinduism, was allowing only members of the Valmiki community to enter the temple. After the verdict of the court, citizens of Hindu, Sikh and Christian communities gathered in this temple in large numbers. On this occasion religious rituals were performed in a scriptural manner by the Hindus. Langar was organized for the first time in the temple after many years. According to ETPB sources, the temple site was handed over to the board’s revenue department. A Christian family had filed a case in the civil court in 2010 claiming ownership of the temple site. After a long struggle of 12 years, the temple has finally been opened for public. The Christian family was reprimanded by the court for making false claims about the temple site.
After the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya was demolished in 1992, this temple in Lahore was vandalized and set on fire by an angry mob. Due to this incident, not only the temple was destroyed, but the nearby shops were also destroyed in the fire. It took many days for the administration to bring the fire under control. At this time, the gold in the temple was taken over by the mob along with the mockery of the idols.
A one-member committee constituted by the Supreme Court of Pakistan submitted a report to the government regarding the restoration of this temple. However, as the case was pending in the court, the construction work of the temple was hampered. However, now after the success of the court battle, the way for the restoration of the temple has been cleared.
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