In yet another shocking incident, a recently discovered Buddha statue was
smashed into pieces by local construction workers and a Muslim cleric on Saturday in Pakistan. The relic was discovered while digging the foundation for a house in the Pashtun-dominated Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province’s Mardan district in Pakistan.
A video of the act, which has since gone viral on social media, showed the construction workers, along with a Muslim cleric, smashing the Buddha statue using a sledgehammer. They are seen walking over and destroying the life-sized Buddha status while expressing their acrimony against Buddhism, which they consider anti-Islam.
According to
reports, the statue was destroyed on the order of a local Muslim cleric, who ruled that it is against Islam. ‘Your nikah would cease to exist and you will no more be a believer if the statue isn’t disposed of’, the cleric told the people at the site, who then followed his orders to destroy the priceless relic, which was accidentally discovered in a good condition.
Local media quoted Abdul Samad, director of the archaeology and museums, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, as saying that he authorities have located the area, where the incident occurred and those involved in vandalism would be held accountable. “We have located the area and we will have those involved arrested soon,” he said.
Four people have been arrested in connection with the case. Initially the police were slow to react to the incident. But when the video emerged on social media and a large number of people criticised the action, the police swung into action and made the arrests.
Takht Bhai was once the homeland for Buddhism
The area from where the relic was discovered is known as the Takht Bhai area, in Mardan district, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Takht Bhai is a part of the Gandhara civilisation, where Buddhism thrived until the 8th or 9th centuries when Islam first began to gain sway in the region
