'Saddened' PM Imran Khan vows to take steps for ensuring safety of Hazara community

• PM Imran Khan vows to take steps to ensure Hazara community's safety
• Prime minister says minorities "enjoy equal rights" in Pakistan
• Sectarian terrorism is taking place in Pakistan, notes PM Imran Khan

Prime Minister Imran Khan on Wednesday said that he has been "saddened" because of the Machh massacre — that claimed the lives of at least 10 people — and vowed to take measures to ensure the safety of the Hazara community.

The premier's comments came after members of the Hazara community refused to end their sit-in following the brutal killing of coal miners in Machh. The protesters have been persistent in saying they would not bury the dead until PM Imran Khan visits their camp.

The bodies of the deceased have been kept where the community is staging its demonstration, on the Quetta-Sibi highway (Western Bypass), near Hazara Town.

Read more: After Machh tragedy, Karachi's Hazaras fear for their safety as well

Meanwhile, speaking to a Turkish media outlet, the premier said that he wanted to follow the Quaid-e-Azam's vision of Pakistan — a state based on justice, welfare, education, research, and democracy.

Speaking about the rights of minorities in the country, he said that there used to be a time when they "enjoyed equal rights" in Pakistan.

Praising his government for protecting the rights of minorities, PM Khan referenced the Hindu shrine desecration incident in Karak and said that "strict action was taken against the elements responsible for the attack."

Read more: JUI-F district leader among 350 booked for vandalising Hindu temple in Karak

The premier maintained that the terrorist organisation Daesh was behind the Machh massacre, adding that "unfortunately, sectarian terrorism is taking place in Pakistan and many terrorist groups have affiliated themselves with Daesh."

Comments about India, France

Talking about India, he said that the incumbent BJP-RSS government has been greatly influenced by Germany's Adolf Hitler, who believed in racism.

The premier said that RSS has "killed" people in India, just like the Nazi's did in Germany. 

"Thousands of Muslims were killed in Gujarat when [Narendra] Modi was the Chief Minister."

Read more: Set your own house in order, Pakistan advises India over accusations of minority rights violations

PM Imran Khan said that the Indian premier should be judged with reference to his past. "Modi claimed that India belonged only to Hindus."

"Christians are also attacked in India, but the real target is the Muslim population," the prime minister stressed.

The premier highlighted that he attempted to improve the Indo-Pak relations after coming into power; however, he did not receive the same response from Narendra Modi.

The prime minister said that the Indian government has been "trying to change the population's proportion and that 800,000 occupation soldiers had surrounded the valley."

Read more: Malaysian council slams India for human rights violations in occupied Kashmir

He lamented that the Kashmiri leadership was either incarcerated or subjected to home arrests. 

"If Western countries think that the Kashmiri people will fade into thin air, then they are mistaken."

He reiterated that two nuclear states cannot afford to go to war with each other.

Speaking about France's measures, the premier said that the country is not dealing with Islamophobia in the "right" manner.

"When you associate religion with terrorism, it has far-reaching consequences."

The prime minister asserted that it was wrong of the French government to use the term "Islamic terrorism", adding that it affects the sentiments of the Muslim community living there.

Moreover, he said that the terms "liberal and extremist" Islam were "misleading," adding that there is only one Islam — the one that Holy Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) had brought.

Coronavirus measures

Shedding light on the federal government's measures for people during the coronavirus lockdown, he said that the government "could only announce a package of Rs8 billion".

Poor countries were more affected by the pandemic as compared to rich states, he noted, adding that Pakistan's tax collection witnessed a substantial fall due to the coronavirus.