Hand gesture lands three visitors to Pakistan’s Mohenjo Daro in trouble

Karachi: Three unidentified visitors to Mohenjo Daro, the famous archaeological site of Sindh, have landed in trouble for making a humiliating hand gesture to a life-size replica of a centuries-old artefact.

A criminal case has been lodged against them.

The visitors to Mohenjo Daro disrespected the replica of the Priest King using a traditional hand gesture that is often used in Pakistan to curse and humiliate someone. The original sculpture of the Priest King is kept in the National Museum of Pakistan in Karachi.

Social media was abuzz as people expressed concern over the unusual incident and demanded the authorities take action against people involved in disrespecting the iconic sculpture representing the rich history of Indus Valley.

The criticism on social media compelled Sindh Culture Minister Syed Sardar Ali Shah to take notice of the issue.

The Culture Minister asked the Director-General (DG) of Antiquities in Sindh to take strict action against the people involved.

The Antiquities DG later started interrogating staff deputed at Mohenjo Daro to help identify the suspects. He also used his social media account to seek the help of the public.

Later, the area police on Sunday lodged a First Information Report (FIR) against the unidentified visitors to Mohenjo Daro. The police formally lodged a criminal case on the complaint of two watchmen at the site.

The police used Section 295-A of the Pakistan Penal Code to lodge the case. A spokesman for Sindh Culture, Tourism, and Antiquities Department said the officials of the department passed on the instructions to lodge the FIR after they sensed that the sentiments of many lovers of archeology and history had been seriously hurt due to the incident.

The most famous and iconic artefact Priest King was discovered during the era of archeologist John Marshall who supervised excavations of Harappa and Mohenjo Daro in 1920s.