Hindu Temple Welcomes Flood-Affected Muslims in Balochistan

In a display of tolerance and interfaith harmony, the Hindu community in the small village of Jalal Khan in Balochistan welcomed 200 flood refugees, most of whom were Muslims, into their temple, Baba Madhodas.

The recent devastating floods have left millions in the country displaced and homeless. The temple in Jalal Khan remained relatively unaffected, due to being on higher ground, and later welcomed the refugees with open arms.

The locals revealed that Baba Madhodas, the temple’s namesake, was a Hindu spiritual leader, who was loved by all, regardless of religion, in the pre-partition era. Iltaf Buzdar, a local, said his parents described him as someone who ‘would think of people through the prism of humanity instead of their caste and creed’.

Most people have moved out of the village to look for better opportunities, but some families have stayed behind to look after the temple, which is visited by worshippers from all across the province.

Rattan Kumar, the current in charge of the temple, explained that it has more than 100 rooms, and accommodates pilgrims who come from all across Sindh and Balochistan annually. 

Kumar’s son elaborated that although some rooms had sustained damage from the floods, most of the structure was safe, and has become a shelter for the people as well as their livestock.

The flood victims taking shelter at the temple said that they had been completely cut off from the rest of the district and were surviving on the resources provided by helicopters before the Hindu community welcomed them into the temple and has been helping them ever since.

Israr Mugheri, a Jalal Khan doctor who has set up a medical camp inside the temple, explained that the Hindu community had called the refugees through the loudspeaker, urging them to take refuge in the temple.