Pakistan’s TLP parties worker vandalises Maharaja Ranjit Singh’s statue in Lahore

Workers of Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), a party from Pakistan, have vandalised the statue of Maharaja Ranjit Singh at the Lahore Fort in Pakistan. They also vandalised the same statue of Maharaja Ranjit Singh earlier on two different occasions.

Pakistan’s information & Broadcasting minister has condemned their act on Twitter. He said that this is very Shameful and dangerous for Pakistan’s image in the world.

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Who was Maharaja Ranjit Singh?

Maharaja Ranjit Singh also known as a Sher-e-Punjab or “Lion of Punjab”, was the first King of the Sikh Empire. He ruled the northwest Indian subcontinent in the early half of the 19th century.

Ranjit Singh introduced reforms, modernization, investment into infrastructure, and general prosperity. His Khalsa army and government included Sikhs, Hindus, Muslims, and Europeans.

He survived smallpox in infancy but lost sight in his left eye. He fought his first battle with his father at age 10. After his father died, he fought several wars to expel the Afghans in his teenage years. He became king at age 21. His empire grew in the Punjab region which is currently under Pakistan.

Ranjit Singh successfully absorbed and united the Sikh community to take over other local kingdoms to create the Sikh Empire.

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What is Tehreek-e-Labbaik in Pakistan?

Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan’s radical Islamist political party. The party was founded by Khadim Hussain Rizvi in August 2015. In 2018 Pakistan’s general election, the party became the fifth largest party according to votes. They won three seats in the Sindh assembly. But it didn’t win any seats in the National and Punjab Assembly. The radical party supports Sharia law and wants to make it official law in Pakistan, through a gradual legal and political process.

In April 2021, the party held violent protests against the arrest of a new ameer, which killed 2 policemen and left 340 injured. On 14th April 2021 party was banned after the violence. The interior minister stated that the Punjab government had requested for the ban and the summary after being approved by the federal cabinet resulted in the ban on TLP under the Anti-Terrorism Act 1997.