Pakistan’s Sindh province gets first Hindu woman police officer

PTI, Sep 4, 2019, 3:35 PM IST

Islamabad: For the first time, a Hindu girl has been inducted into Sindh Police after passing the provincial competitive examinations, a media report said on Wednesday.

Pushpa Kolhi has been posted as the Assistant Sub Inspector (ASI) in the province, Geo News reported. The news was first shared by human rights activist Kapil Dev on his Twitter handle on Tuesday.

“Pushpa Kolhi has become the first girl from #Hindu community who has qualified provincial competitive examination through Sindh Public Service Commission and become Assistant Sub Inspector (ASI) in Sindh Police. More power to her!” Dev tweeted.

In January, Suman Pawan Bodani, a Pakistani belonging to the Hindu community, was appointed a judge to the civil and judicial magistrate. Bodani who hails from Sindh’s Shahdadkot area, stood 54th in the merit list for the appointment of civil judge/judicial magistrate.

Speaking to BBC Urdu, Bodani said she belongs to an underdeveloped rural area of Sindh, where she has seen the poor struggling to cope with various challenges.

She added that her family, including her father and siblings, had extended their full support to her and this had helped her in achieving her dreams to become a judge.

Hindus form the biggest minority community in Pakistan. According to official estimates, 75 lakh Hindus live in Pakistan. However, according to the community, over 90 lakh Hindus are living in the country.

Majority of Pakistan’s Hindu population is settled in Sindh province where they share culture, traditions and language with their Muslim fellows.