Islamabad, February 13: Unidentified armed men kidnapped a Hindu trader in the restive Balochistan province of southwest Pakistan, police has said.
Sham Lal was travelling with his family to Karachi when the armed men intercepted his car in Rashidabad area of Khuzdar district and took him away to an unknown location yesterday.
Following the incident, the local traders association and Hindu businessmen protested the kidnapping and demanded that authorities should steps to trace him.
Police launched a search to recover the trader, officials said. No group claimed responsibility for the kidnapping. In a separate incident, unidentified armed men looted cash from Hindu trader Jaisa Ram in Sibi area of Balochistan. No further details of the incident were immediately available.
Scores of Hindu traders have either been targeted for extortion or kidnapped for ransom in Balochistan over the past two years. Several Hindu families from Balochistan have applied for asylum in India.
Earlier this month, two Hindus were injured when traders opened fire at them following a dispute over the land of According to a media report, the 100-year-old temple is located in the heart of Umerkot town.
