Saveera Parkash made headlines in Pakistan and India this week after she became the first Hindu woman to run for a general seat from the Buner district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Before Parkash, another brave Hindu woman threw down the gauntlet at several men in the patriarchal society of Pakistan in the 2018 general election.
Sunita Parmer was the first Hindu woman to run for a general seat from the Tharpark district in Sindh.
When Saveera drew attention from reporters across the border, an obvious question to ask was what became of the first Hindu woman to run for a general seat in Thar district.
A resident of Islamkot, Sunita wanted to improve education standards for women and the health facilities in Thar.
She filed nomination papers in the PS-56 Tharparker III constituency of the Sindh Assembly.
Unlike the conservative Buner district in the Pashtun area, Tharkpar is a Hindu majority region and at least seven other candidates in the same constituency were Hindus, though Sunita was the only Hindu woman to compete against men.
The result declared Faqir Shair Muhammad Balani of Pakistan Peoples Party Parliamentarian as the winner with a wide margin. His primary rival was Arbab Togachi Fawad Razzaq from the Grand Democratic Alliance.
Sunita was one of many independent candidates and she secured 352, still more than five other candidates.
After Sunita Parmer lost elections she took up a government job. Currently, she is working as a public school teacher. Her new role would not allow her to speak with reporters, Sumita’s family told Liqaut Ali Nehro of Aaj News in Mithi.
