Krishna Kumari Kohli: Pakistan elects first Hindu woman to Senate

Krishna Kumari Kolhi (39) from Sindh province in Pakistan became first-ever Dalit Hindu woman to get elected as Senator, member of upper house (Senate) of Muslim-majority country.
She won the election for the reserved seat for women from Sindh province.  She is a member of Bilawal Bhutto Zardari-led Pakistan People’s Party (PPP).  Her election represents major milestone for women and minority rights in Pakistan. Earlier, PPP had elected first Hindu woman named Ratna Bhagwandas Chawla as senator.

Krishna Kumari Kohli

She belongs to remote village in Nagarparkar district of Thar in Sindh province of Pakistan. Kohli was born in February 1979 in poor family. She and her family members had spent nearly three years in private jail (as forced bonded labours) owned by landlord of Kunri in Umerkot district. She was grade 3 student at time when her family held captive.
She belongs to family of valiant freedom fighter Rooplo Kolhi, who had waged a war against invading British colonialist forces when they had attacked Sindh from Nagarparkar side in 1857.
At the age of 16, she was married to Lalchand. Even after marriage she pursued her studies and in 2013 completed masters in sociology from the Sindh University. She had joined PPP as social activist along with her brother, who was later elected as Chairman of Union Council Berano. She has actively participated and worked for  rights of downtrodden people of marginalised communities living in Thar and other areas.

Month: Current Affairs - March, 2018