Shri Swaminarayan Mandir

Shri Swaminarayan Mandir

Located on M. A. Jinnah Road, Shri Swaminarayan Mandir was constructed in 1849. The temple is spread over an area of 32,306 square yards. During the tumultuous time of the division of the subcontinent into India and Pakistan, the temple was converted into a refugee camp where all those who wanted to go to India waited for their departure to India by ship. This historic temple and its role as a refugee camp in 1947 remind its visitors that they are humans first and Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, Pakistanis, or Indians later. All religions preach tolerance and acceptance of other faiths and a visit to Shri Swaminarayan Mandir by non-Hindus proves that people of Pakistan accept minorities as an integral part of Pakistan. Apart from worship there, Hindus visit the temple to celebrate all their festivals like Swaminarayan Jayanti, Dussehra, Holi, Diwali, etc. As a service to the community, a mass wedding ceremony of poor couples was held here in 2008.