Though few in numbers, the Hindu community in KP is still denied basic human rights: Hindu rights activist Raveena
\nJAVED KHAN
\nPESHAWAR: In a modest home in Peshawar, a Hindu widow waits for a document that does not exist, one that could determine her rights, her social security, and her future.
\nWithout a marriage certificate, she cannot prove the legitimacy of her relationship, cannot claim her share of property, and cannot fully assert her rights over her own children. Her case, like hundreds of others, remains entangled in a legal system that has yet to formally recognise her marriage.
\nFor many in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa\u2019s Hindu community, this is not an isolated story. It reflects a shared reality, where a federal law exists, but in the province, it is neither on paper in enforceable form nor visible in practice.
\nIn 2017, the Hindu Marriage Act was passed by the National Assembly, offering long-awaited legal recognition to Hindu marriages across Pakistan. The law has since been implemented in other parts of the country, including Islamabad, Punjab, Balochistan and Sindh, enabling couples to formally register their unions and secure legal protections tied to family life.
\nIn KP, however, the process has yet to move beyond paperwork.
\nNearly nine years on, the provincial government has not finalised the rules required for the law\u2019s implementation. Without these regulations, marriages cannot be officially registered, leaving tens of thousands of Hindus in legal limbo, unable to document their relationships or access the rights that flow from them.
\nHaroon Sarbadial, focal person for the National Lobbying Delegation for Minority Rights and a religious leader within the Hindu community, says the lack of a formal legal framework has left families in prolonged legal uncertainty.
\nAccording to him, hundreds of cases involving Hindu community members are currently pending in civil courts due to the absence of proper implementation.
\n\u201cThe delay has created serious difficulties for the community,\u201d Sarbadial says, pointing to the growing number of unresolved disputes.
\nHe emphasises that women, particularly widows, are the most affected. Without official documentation of marriage, he says, many are unable to claim inheritance, property rights, or legal guardianship
\nAccording to the 2023 census, Hindus are the largest minority group, with a population of about 3.9 million in Pakistan. In KP, the Hindu community makes up the largest share of the non-Muslim population at 44.09pc.
\nThe total Hindu population in the province is 504, 73 with around 49pc women and 51pc men.
\nImran Khan, a deputy legislation officer, in the Law department said although the law was enacted at the federal level in 2017, the province lacked clarity on the procedural rules required for its implementation, resulting in significant delay.
\nDocuments available with the Lead Pakistan show that the matter related to Hindu Marriage Act 2017 implementation in KP was initially taken up by the auqaf department in 2018, which oversees minority affairs in the province.
\nHowever, later the responsibility was given to the local government department as it is the sole authority to issue marriage, birth and death certificates and also shares them with NADRA. Mr Imran said uncertainty over which department would frame the rules of business for the above mentioned act caused further delays, consuming nearly more than two years.<\/p>\n
Subsequently, instead of implementing the law in its original form, the provincial government decided in 2025 to introduce amendments, he said.
\n\u201cThese include changes to the title of the Act and revisions to certain sections related primarily to the appointment of marriage registrars for the Hindu community, \u201cImran added and said that the proposed amendments, which have been approved by the provincial cabinet after vetting by the law department, are expected to be presented before the provincial assembly for consideration.
\nSaeed Khan, a section officer in the local government department, said procedural requirements had also contributed to the slow pace.
\nHe explained that under existing rules, directorates and attached departments could not directly correspond with the law department for vetting any law or RoBs, and all communication must pass through the secretary\u2019s office, prolonging the process of framing rules for implementation of the act.
\n\u201cThe draft rules were first sent to the secretary\u2019s office, reviewed and amended before being forwarded for legal vetting,\u201d he said, adding that prolonged correspondence and what he described as limited official prioritization and political disinterest had kept the issue of ROBs for the aforementioned act confined to files.
\nHe said progress would likely remain slow unless the provincial leadership takes a more active interest in the matter.
\nSarbadial furthered that despite several meetings with senior officials and ministers since the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) came to power in the province, he said little has changed on the ground.
\nAccording to him, the provincial cabinet has only \u201cconditionally approved\u201d the rules, while also seeking amendments to the federal law, nearly nine years after its passage, further delaying its implementation.
\nA senior official from the law department, speaking anonymously, said the amendments to the Hindu Marriage Act 2017 were needed to make the process easier to manage. Previously, the power to appoint pandits (Nikha-Khwa) and registrars (Nikha Registrar) was held by the cabinet or government. This made things slow, because permission had to be sought for every single appointment from the provincial cabinet.
\nTo fix this, the provincial government decided to amend the act enacted by the National Assembly and give the powers to appoint and issue licenses to registrar or pandit to the local government department. This will allow faster appointments of registrars for the Hindu community without needing cabinet approval each time.
\n\u201cOnce the amendments are in place, registrars will be able to officially register marriages and issue marriage certificates. They will also have to share these records with NADRA within 15 days,\u201d he added.
\nIn Peshawar, Hindu social activist and community leader Raveena said the consequences of this delay are visible in everyday life. She describes a system where women struggle to prove their marital status and, in turn, their legal rights.
\n\u201cHindu women have no documentary proof of marriage in KP, which affects their ability to claim rights related to children, property or inheritance,\u201d she says.
\nRaveena adds that the absence of birth, marriage and death certificates has compounded the problem, leaving families without the documentation needed for even basic legal processes.
\nShe also points to cases of multiple marriages, prohibited in Hinduism, which, she says, become difficult to challenge without legal proof.
\nAccording to her, more than 300 cases, mostly involving divorce, fraudulent marriages and inheritance disputes, are currently pending in civil courts. She explains that access to family courts remains unavailable due to the absence of a formal legal framework and rules of business.
\nRaveena attributes the delay to years of administrative inertia. Files, she says, have continued to move between departments, while amendments are being introduced at a stage when implementation should already have taken place.
\nMaqsood Ali, an official working on the RoBs related to the Hindu Marriage Act 2017 at the directorate general of local government, said that implementation of the law would not face hurdles once the proposed amendments vetted by the law department, endorsed by the cabinet, get through the provincial assembly.
\nAugustin Jacob, President of the Minority Forum Pakistan and a human rights activist, says the situation reflects a broader failure to implement an already approved law. He notes that the legislation, passed in 2017 with the support of civil society and other stakeholders, was intended to provide legal recognition to Hindu marriages.
\n\u201cThis important act has yet to be fully implemented due to delays and lack of clarity from policymakers in KP,\u201d he says.
\nJacob stresses that the law is critical for ensuring the rights of Hindu women, whose marriages remain unrecognised by local and provincial authorities.
\n\u201cSuch delays not only undermine the intent of the law but also continue to deny basic legal rights and protections to those affected,\u201d he adds.
\nHe says urgent action is needed to ensure that religious minorities, particularly Hindus in the province, are granted recognition and dignity equal to other citizens.
\nJacob maintains that Hindu leadership and civil society organisations have consistently raised the issue, but no meaningful progress has been achieved. The continued inaction, he says, amounts to a denial of basic human rights.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Though few in numbers, the Hindu community in KP is still denied basic human rights: Hindu rights activist Raveena JAVED KHAN PESHAWAR: In a modest home in Peshawar, a Hindu widow waits for a document that does not exist, one that could determine her rights, her social security, and her future. Without a marriage certificate, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":539275,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-539268","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-top-news"],"yoast_head":"\n