Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Gulzar Ahmed on Monday inaugurated a reconstructed temple in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Karak district on the occassion of Diwali, reported The Friday Times.

A mob led by a local cleric desecrated the Shri Param Hans Ji Maharaj temple and demolished it in December last year.

Justice Gulzar took notice of the incident and in February, a 3-member bench ordered the KP government to reconstruct the temple and asked for a timeline regarding its completion. A month earlier they had ordered the government to recover money from the vandalizers for its reconstruction.

Justice Ijazul Ahsan said the court had ordered to recover the money from those who burnt the temple so that they could learn a lesson.

Addressing the inaugural ceremony, the chief justice said the Supreme Court of Pakistan has always taken steps to protect the rights of minorities and it would continue to do so in the future.

Gulzar noted the Constitution ensured the same rights to people belonging to all religions. “Everyone holds their holy places in high regard. And no one has the right to damage any religious place of worship,” the CJP said.

Pakistan Hindu Council Patron-in-Chief Dr Ramesh Kumar Vankwani, who is also a leader of the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), expressed gratitude to the CJP for taking quick notice of the temple vandalisation in Karak. “It is the Evacuee Property Trust Board’s primary responsibility to maintain the temple,” he said.

During his address, Vankwani urged the government to open four more historic temples for Hindus as it would allow thousands of Hindus to visit their places of worship.

Talking about safety of minorities in the country, the PTI leader maintained that the minorities were free to practise their rights in the country and said "the society should work in unison to safeguard the country’s image".