Embassy of Pakistan in Doha on Sunday hosted a Diwali celebration for the Hindu expatriate community from Pakistan.
Prominent members of the community celebrated the festivity with ambassador Syed Ahsan Raza Shah and the embassy staff.
The ambassador cut a cake with the Hindu community members and spent some time with them. The guests were served with traditional food and sweets.
“I am very happy to host the celebration for our Hindu community from Pakistan. Diwali is an occasion of happiness and we are celebrating it together. It is the festival of lights. It shows victory of light over darkness and good over evil. It is also a time to remember the oppressed people across the world,” ambassador Ahsan said on the occasion.
The envoy further said: “The embassy is like a home for Pakistanis. The Pakistani Hindus are celebrating Diwali at their home. We as Pakistanis are united in our happiness as well as in sorrow. We celebrate all our religious, cultural and national occasions together. We have kept this celebration limited due to the Covid-19 pandemic.”
Dr Rajesh Kumar, a medical practitioner by profession and a native of Tharparkar in Sindh, has been an active member of the Pakistani Hindu community in Qatar for over four years. “I am very delighted to be in the embassy. I feel I am at my home in Pakistan. The community at large is thankful to the ambassador and his team for arranging the celebration. We often celebrate the occasion with our family back in home but this year we are the guests of our embassy.”
Dr Kumar also spoke high about living in Qatar. “This country is one of the finest places to live in. We feel free to celebrate our occasions here. At my home here, I celebrated Diwali the way we do back in Pakistan.”
Sumair Khatri, a corporate banker working in Qatar for three years, also expressed his happiness. “I am very happy to be here. This year I could not go to Karachi to celebrate the occasion with my parents. I am however delighted to be hosted by the embassy.”
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