Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has approved the formation of a task force to oversee the implementation of the rights of minorities.

The move reportedly comes after the National Assembly passed a resolution relating to the matter.
Headed by MNA Dr Ramesh Kumar Vankwani, patron-in-chief of the Pakistan Hindu Council, the task force will be made up of 23 parliamentarians, senators and ex-officio members.

The chairman of the task force will hold the status of a federal minister, the notification’s “terms of reference” set out, while the body will play an advisory role.

The country’s provincial governments and administrations have been instructed to support the task force in discharging its functions.

In 2014, the top court had ordered a national council of minorities’ rights be set up to monitor the rights and safeguards provided to minorities under the Constitution and law.

It said the council would frame policy recommendations for safeguarding and protecting minorities’ rights by the provincial and federal governments.