‘After Pakistan SC’s 2018 verdict, Karachi’s Hanuman temple reclaimed land encroached by jihadi groups’

Ayodhya: The Panch Mukhi Hanuman Mandir in Karachi, Pakistan, possessed more than 25,000 square feet of land at the time of India's partition post-Independence. As Hindus became a minority in Pakistan, the temple land was swiftly encroached upon and captured. However, following a historic decision by Pakistan's Supreme Court in 2018, the temple reclaimed all its land.
Ramnath Mishra, the head priest of the Panchmukhi Hanuman Temple and crematorium in Karachi, who is in India to immerse the ashes of 400 Hindus and Sikhs, which he has brought from Pakistan, in Haridwar, spoke to TOI in Ayodhya. He earlier visited Maha Kumbh.
Mishra said that substantial temple land was seized by communal forces in Pakistan. "We approached the Supreme Court of Pakistan for the liberation of the temple's land and demanded all the land we possessed before the Partition be returned to us. Many jamaats (hardliner groups) opposed our temple, but we fought hard, and the Pakistan SC ruled in our favour," he said.
Mishra claimed his ancestors have been serving the Panchmukhi Hanuman Temple in Karachi for 1,500 years. Mishra said the court's decision was swiftly implemented. "The Pakistan Army and the government of Pakistan on the instructions of the Supreme Court assisted and fully supported us, standing against the jihadi groups," he said. "The Pakistan SC has also given a verdict for the liberation of all places of worship and the properties belonging to minority communities. The apex court has ordered handing over of properties of minority places of worship to the minority community," he said.
"But there is a lot of construction left to be done in the temple to give it a grand shape. We have appealed to the government of Pakistan to help and cooperate with us in making a grand mandir. It can attract tourists from all over the world and that will definitely give a boost to the Pakistan economy," Mishra said.
Speaking over the tense relationship between India and Pakistan, Mishra said, "People at large from both countries want to have peace. Both the governments must show leniency in providing visas as Hindus in Pakistan always want to perform char dham yatra while Hindus in India want to visit many ancient Hindu places of worship in Pakistan such as Gorakhnath temple in Peshawar, Shiv temple in Chitti Hatti, Panch Mukhi Hanuman Mandir in Karachi and Krishna temple in Islamabad," he said.
Mishra belongs to the Nath sect and is a big fan of Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath.
"My visa was only for Lucknow, but when I expressed my desire to visit other holy cities to Yogi Adityanath, the permission to visit Prayagraj, Kashi, Mathura, and Ayodhya was granted within no time," he said.
Ayodhya: The Panch Mukhi Hanuman Mandir in Karachi, Pakistan, possessed more than 25,000 square feet of land at the time of India's partition post-Independence. As Hindus became a minority in Pakistan, the temple land was swiftly encroached upon and captured. However, following a historic decision by Pakistan's Supreme Court in 2018, the temple reclaimed all its land.
Ramnath Mishra, the head priest of the Panchmukhi Hanuman Temple and crematorium in Karachi, who is in India to immerse the ashes of 400 Hindus and Sikhs, which he has brought from Pakistan, in Haridwar, spoke to TOI in Ayodhya. He earlier visited Maha Kumbh.
Mishra said that substantial temple land was seized by communal forces in Pakistan. "We approached the Supreme Court of Pakistan for the liberation of the temple's land and demanded all the land we possessed before the Partition be returned to us. Many jamaats (hardliner groups) opposed our temple, but we fought hard, and the Pakistan SC ruled in our favour," he said.
Mishra claimed his ancestors have been serving the Panchmukhi Hanuman Temple in Karachi for 1,500 years. Mishra said the court's decision was swiftly implemented. "The Pakistan Army and the government of Pakistan on the instructions of the Supreme Court assisted and fully supported us, standing against the jihadi groups," he said. "The Pakistan SC has also given a verdict for the liberation of all places of worship and the properties belonging to minority communities. The apex court has ordered handing over of properties of minority places of worship to the minority community," he said.
"But there is a lot of construction left to be done in the temple to give it a grand shape. We have appealed to the government of Pakistan to help and cooperate with us in making a grand mandir. It can attract tourists from all over the world and that will definitely give a boost to the Pakistan economy," Mishra said.
Speaking over the tense relationship between India and Pakistan, Mishra said, "People at large from both countries want to have peace. Both the governments must show leniency in providing visas as Hindus in Pakistan always want to perform char dham yatra while Hindus in India want to visit many ancient Hindu places of worship in Pakistan such as Gorakhnath temple in Peshawar, Shiv temple in Chitti Hatti, Panch Mukhi Hanuman Mandir in Karachi and Krishna temple in Islamabad," he said.
Mishra belongs to the Nath sect and is a big fan of Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath.
"My visa was only for Lucknow, but when I expressed my desire to visit other holy cities to Yogi Adityanath, the permission to visit Prayagraj, Kashi, Mathura, and Ayodhya was granted within no time," he said.