Lahore, Sep 21 (PTI) Three of the eight people accused of torturing a Hindu family and 15 other women for fetching drinking water from a mosque in Pakistan's Punjab province have secured pre-arrest bail.

A police officer concerned told PTI on Tuesday that three of the eight main suspects named in the FIR in the Hindu family torture case in Rahim Yar Khan district, over 500kms from Lahore, have secured pre-arrest bail.

"Main suspects -- Mian Ghaffar, Mian Razzak and Mian Sattar --- have got protective bail from a local court. However, police have asked them to join the investigation," he said, and added that the police were conducting raids to arrest the other five suspects.

"None of them have been arrested so far," he said. The incident took place on September 9 in Basti Kapoor Rahim Yar Khan. According to the FIR, Alam Ram Bheel, his family and 15 other women worked in a piece of land in Chak-106.

On September 9, Bheel went outside a nearby mosque to fetch drinking water from a tap. Meanwhile, local landlord Mian Ghaffar went there and questioned him over fetching water from the place of worship saying he was violating the sanctity of the mosque.

The FIR quoted Bheel as having said that Ghaffar called some seven armed men who started beating him, his father, his mother and 15 women who were picking raw cotton there.

On the intervention of some local people, Ghaffar stopped the assault with a warning to never fetch water from the site, the FIR says. Ghaffar and his accomplices are also accused of depriving the Bheel family members of cash Rs 35,000 and gold ornaments worth Rs 85,000.

The Bheels have been living in Rahim Yar Khan's Basti Kapoor for more than a century. Most of the clan members were farm workers and are extremely poor.

Hindus form the biggest minority community in Pakistan.

According to official estimates, 75 lakh Hindus live in Pakistan. However, according to the community, over 90 lakh Hindus are living in the country.

The majority of Pakistan's Hindu population is settled in Sindh province where they share culture, traditions and language with Muslim residents. They often complain of harassment by extremists. PTI MZ IND AKJ IND

Three accused of torturing Hindu family in Pakistan's Punjab secure pre-arrest bail

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