Hindu minor boy sexually assaulted, murdered in Pakistan

According to media reports, the body of an 11-year-old Hindu boy, who had gone missing on Friday evening, was found on Saturday in an abandoned house in Babarloi town in Khairpur Mir area of the province. The Station House Officer (SHO) of Babarloi police station said the boy was strangled to death before the culprits sexually assaulted him.

Islamabad:An 11-year-old Hindu boy was sexually assaulted and brutally murdered in Pakistan's Sindh province, according to a media report on Saturday.

The boy went missing on Friday evening and his body was later found on Saturday in an abandoned house in Babarloi town in Khairpur Mir area of the province, his family members said.

"The entire family was busy with Guru Nanak's birthday events. We do not know how the child went missing. He was found dead in the house at 11 pm," Raj Kumar, a relative of the child, was quoted as saying by The Express Tribune newspaper.

"He was a grade five student, and was born in 2011," he said, adding that the whole area was gripped by fear after the horrific incident.

The Station House Officer (SHO) of Babarloi police station said the boy was strangled to death before the culprits sexually assaulted him. "We have arrested two men, one of whom has confessed to the crime," the SHO said.

Zubair Mahar of Child Protection Authority Sukkur said there were also torture marks on the minor's body.

It was the second such incident in the province in the last few weeks, he said.

"A short while ago, a minor girl from the Hindu community in Saleh Pat, Sukkur district, went missing. The police have also announced Rs 2.5 million reward for her recovery, but it has all been in vain," Mahar said.

There have been several reports of atrocities on Hindus and other minority communities in Pakistan.

According to the 2017 census, Hindus constitute the largest religious minority in Pakistan followed by Christians make up the second largest religious minority. The Ahmadis, Sikhs and Parsis are also among the notable religious minorities in Pakistan.

Cases of sexual violence against children have also frequently come up in Pakistan. Earlier this week, police in Rawalpindi arrested a schoolteacher suspected of sexually abusing a seven-year-old girl at a school in the garrison city.

PTI