Source: Indian Express

Hindus in Dera Ismail Khan are forced to bury their dead due the unavailability of proper cremation grounds.

Sawan Chudhry, a resident of DI Khan, who had to bury his father Jawarya Chudhry after his death in 1965, says he still regrets not being able to cremate his father’s body.

“My father was buried at the Munawar graveyard in Madina Colony. It is unfortunate that his final rites could not be performed according to our faith,” The Express Tribune quoted Chudhry, as saying.

“In 1985, Pandith Kahdaree Lal was cremated and he is the only Hindu whose remains were incinerated in the district since the inception of Pakistan,” said 67-year-old Chudhry, adding that the ceremony had prior approval from the local government and was performed within the premises of the army cantonment area. RC Sharma, a priest at Balmeek Mandir, said: “Hindus in DI Khan have to bury their dear ones because there are no cremation grounds here. Our relatives in other parts of Pakistan can perform funeral rites according to Hindu custom and we also want to do the same.” Read more