First minority Hindu woman to contest on general seat from Thar desert

KARACHI: A 31-year-old Hindu woman, Sunita Parmar has emerged as a beacon of hope not only for minorities but for all Pakistani women, who make up 52 per cent of the country’s 220 million population.

Sunita Parmar has taken a difficult decision of contesting general elections being held on July 25 and is confident of challenging stereotypes in the process.

Hailing from Tharparker’s Hindu Meghwar community, Sunita has made history as the first Hindu woman to contest in the provincial assembly election. She is contesting from constituency number PS-56 of Tharparkar district in Pakistan’s southern Sindh province as an independent candidate.

Unveiling her agenda in her native town of Islamkot, Sunita vowed to improve standards of education for women and uplifting of poor health facilities in Thar. “I will try to improve standards of education for women and health facilities in Tharparkar,” she said.

“Previous governments did nothing for the people of this area. Even in 21st century, we lack basic health facilities and proper educational institutes for women,” Sunita said.

Despite hardships and pressure from society including the pressure to stop studying, she did her Masters in Education. “I believe in girl’s education. This is the only way to make women stronger and prosper,” she said.

“Gone are the days when women were supposed to be weaker and inferior. I am confident of winning the election,” Sunita said.

Backed by her family, relatives and the community, Sunita is breaking several social and political barriers, Al Arabiya English reported.

“This is the 21st century and we are ready to fight even the lion,” a confident and well-educated Sunita Parmar said.

In March this year, Krishna Kumari Kolhi from Pakistan’s Sindh become the first-ever Hindu Dalit female senator.

Kolhi, 39, from Thar, is a member of Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), one of the main political parties in Pakistan. She won the election for the reserved seat for women from Sindh province. Her election was a major milestone for women and minority rights in Pakistan.

“Women like Sunita and Krishna are the real face of Pakistan. I’m sure they will contribute to making Pakistan prosper,” Zareen Gul, a women rights activist said.