Pakistan Army appoints first Hindu as Lieutenant Colonel

RAWALPINDI: In a first, a Hindu officer Kelash Kumar has been promoted to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in the Pakistan Army.

In a statement, the Inter-Services Public Relations called Kumar a “brilliant officer”. Kumar’s rank was upgraded from Major to Lieutenant Colonel during the promotion boards. He hails from Sindh’s Tharparkar district and is the first Hindu-Pakistani to be elevated to the position.

Hindu activist Kapil Dev announced the news on Twitter, with the caption ‘History in [the] Making’. Lt Col Kumar was reportedly serving in the army’s Medical Corps.

Hindus were not permitted to join the Pakistan Army until 2000, over 50 years after the country’s independence. In 2019, Dr Kelash Garvada became the first-ever Hindu Major in the Pakistan Army and was posted in the Ministry of Defence.

The 2017 census recorded the population of Hindus in Pakistan at 4.4 million, or 2.14 percent of the total population, the majority of whom are settled in Sindh.

READ MORE: Rajender Meghwar becomes first Hindu ASP of Pakista

Lt Col Kelash Kumar’s promotion was met with praise on social media, with many celebrating that a member of one of Pakistan’s religious minority communities was serving the country.

History in Making

Kelash Kumar becomes the first #Hindu officer to have been promoted as Lieutenant Colonel in #PakArmy.

Congratulations, Kelash!!! pic.twitter.com/U0o6uApTTP

— Kapil Dev (@KDSindhi) February 24, 2022

Recently, Rajender Meghwar has become the first Hindu to be appointed as Assistant Superintendent Police (ASP).  Hailing from district Badin, Rajender Meghwar cleared the CSS exam in 2021 and passed with distinction.  He has been allotted a police group and will now be a proud member of the PSP.

In September 2019, a Hindu girl has Pushpa Kohli was inducted into Sindh Police after passing the provincial competitive examinations. She qualified through Sindh Public Service Commission and become an Assistant Sub Inspector (ASI) in Sindh Police.

In January 2019, Suman Pawan Bodani who belongs to the Hindu community was appointed a judge to the civil and judicial magistrate. Bodani hails from Shahdadkot area and stood 54th on the merit list for the appointment of civil judge/judicial magistrate.

In an interview, Bodani said she belongs to an underdeveloped rural area of Sindh, where she has seen the poor struggling to cope with various challenges. She added that her family, including her father and siblings, had extended their full support to her and this had helped her in achieving her dreams to become a judge.