Hindu Woman, Daughter Abducted in Karachi; Forced Conversion Fears Rise in Sindh

A Hindu woman and her minor daughter were abducted by unidentified armed men in Karachi’s Sher Shah area, sparking renewed alarm over the rising cases of forced conversions and marriages targeting Hindu girls in Pakistan’s Sindh province.

The kidnapping occurred on Saturday in the Sindhi Mohalla locality, where three gunmen reportedly forced the woman—identified as Rani—and her young daughter into a white Alto moments after she stepped outside her home.

The family immediately raised an alert, and local police registered an FIR, but the victims remain missing. The incident has triggered widespread fear among the Hindu community, which has long reported systemic targeting of women and girls belonging to religious minorities.

Activists fear forced conversion, forced marriage

Civil rights activist Shiva Kaachi, who advocates for the rights of Hindus in Sindh, said the family fears the abductors will forcibly convert Rani and her daughter to Islam and marry them off—an increasingly common pattern in the region.

Calling the abduction “deeply alarming,” Kaachi urged senior police officials to intervene swiftly, stressing that young Hindu women are now being abducted with growing frequency.

He also revealed that he himself has received multiple death threats from groups allegedly involved in such kidnappings and forced conversions. "I fear for my life, but I have reported the threats and requested security," he said.

Another kidnapping attempt in Umerkot

In a separate incident in Umerkot, armed men attempted to kidnap a newly married Hindu woman named Bhagvi. She was traveling with her husband to visit her parents when the attackers intercepted them. Local residents stepped in and fought off the assailants, preventing the abduction.

These back-to-back incidents have once again highlighted the vulnerability of Pakistan’s Hindu minority, particularly women and girls, who often come from poor families and lack legal or social protection.

Community leaders have appealed for urgent government action to stop what they describe as a worsening pattern of religious persecution and gender-based violence.