Pakistan names first Hindu minister in government for more than two decades

Darshan Lal lands a cabinet role in the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz party after a re-shuffle by new prime minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi

Shahid Khaqan Abbasi (R) was sworn into office this week after former leader Nawaz Sharif was ousted amid corruption claims (AP)

A Hindu politician has been ushered into the highest level of government in Pakistan for the first time in more than two decades in the predominantly Islamic country.

Darshan Lal landed a place at the top table in the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party after a cabinet reshuffle by new prime minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi.

The former doctor rose up the ranks after being elected to the national assembly for the second time in the south Asian county in 2013, running for a seat reserved for minorities.

Mr Lal will head coordination between four Pakistani provinces, a government official said.

He landed his ministerial role as Mr Abbasi pulled together his new cabinet in a bid to bolster support for the ruling PML-N party ahead of general elections set for next year.

Mr Abbasi was sworn in as Pakistan’s new prime minister on Wednesday after former leader Nawaz Sharif was toppled last week following a corruption scandal.

The new PML-N leader has doubled the size of the cabinet in the re-shuffle on Friday to 47 ministers and filled the roles with aides and allies of Mr Sharif to boost the clout of his government.

“It’s a massive cabinet. It shows that it’s all about the next election,” Pakistani writer and analyst Zahid Hussain said, according to a report in the Indian Express.

Mr Sharif was ousted last week by the country’s Supreme Court amid allegations he and his family had hidden vast amounts of cash in offshore accounts. The claims first came to light thanks to the Panama Papers.

Mr Lal was named as the first Hindu minister in Pakistan since the late politician Rana Chandra Singh served in the government of the Pakistan Peoples Party.

Hindus form just over 2 per cent of the population of some 200 million people in Pakistan – a largely Islamic country which was carved out of mainly Muslim areas during the partition of India.

More than 1,000 have fled into neighbouring India in the past five years, figures show, with many on the run from what they say is religious and cultural persecution.

Islamabad says the claims, including that Hindu women are sexually harrassed, are exaggerated and says the minority community is safe.