Pakistan arrests 31 people over demolishing of Hindu temple
PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AP) — Pakistani police arrested at least 31 people in overnight raids after a Hindu temple was set on fire and demolished by a mob led by hundreds of supporters of a radical Islamist party, officials said Thursday. Meanwhile, dozens of Hindus rallied in the southern port city of Karachi to demand the rebuilding of their place of worship. The temple’s destruction Wednesday in Karak, a town in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, also drew condemnation from human rights activists and leaders of Pakistan’s minority Hindu community. Local police said they detained 31 people overnight and Thursday’s raids and more raids were underway to arrest radical cleric Maulana Shareef and other individuals who participated or provoked the mob to demolish the temple. The attack happened after members of the Hindu community received permission from local authorities to renovate the temple. According to police and witnesses, the mob was led by Shareef and supporters of Pakist