Sindhi Hindus

Sindhi Hindus are ethnic Sindhis who practice Hinduism and are native to, or have origins in, Sindh, Pakistan. They are spread across Sindh, primarily concentrated in the eastern districts; with a significant diasporic population in India, mainly composing the descendants of partition-era migrants who fled from Pakistan to the Dominion of India, in what was a wholesale exchange of Hindu and Muslim populations in some areas. Some later emigrated from the Indian subcontinent and settled in other parts of the world.

According to the 2023 census, there are 4.9 million Sindhi Hindus residing within the Sindh province of Pakistan with major population centers being Mirpur Khas Division and Hyderabad Division that combined account for more than 2 million of them. Meanwhile, the 2011 census listed 2.77 million speakers of Sindhi in India, including speakers of Kutchi, a number that does not include Sindhi Hindus who no longer speak the Sindhi language. The vast majority of Sindhi Hindus living in India belong to the Lohana jāti, which includes the sub-groups of Amil, Bhaiband and Sahiti.

Prior to Arab invasions, majority of Sindh's population practiced Buddhism, although a significant minority adhered to Hinduism, as well. During the Arab invasions, majority of Sindhi Hindus were a rural pastoral population, who lived mostly in upper Sindh, a region that was entirely Hindu; while the Buddhists of Sindh were a mercantile population, who lived entirely in the urban areas of lower Sindh.

After many successful raids, collaboration by the local Buddhist population, and resistance by the local Hindu population, the army of the Umayyad Caliphate led by Muhammad Bin Qasim successfully invaded and conquered Sindh in 712CE, against the last Hindu king of Sindh, Raja Dahir.

Sindh, under the control of Qasim, saw a decline of Buddhism, as most Buddhists started converting to Islam. The later reign of the Delhi Sultanate, led to further decline, with both Hinduism and Buddhism becoming minority religions in Sindh. Buddhism later collapsed and ceased to exist in Sindh, while Hinduism remained persistent, managing to survive and flourish throughout the centuries as a minority religion. The consistency of Hinduism in Sindh is credited the dependency of the rural Hindu population on intra-regional commerce and flexibility to adapt to altered circumstances.

Prior to the partition of India, as per the 1941 census, the Sindhi Hindu population accounted for around 27% of Sindh's population, most of whom moved to India. Today, Sindhi Hindus in Pakistan number around 4.2 million, around 9% of the region's population. Sindhi Hindus are the largest ethnolinguistic Hindu group in Pakistan. Those remaining in Pakistan face religious persecution and discrimination. Reports cite instances of violence against Sindhi Hindus, unequal economic opportunities, and the forced conversion of women to Islam. These conditions have caused continued mass migration and created a significant refugee population, with activists often criticizing the state's failure to address these violations.

Historically, Sindhi Hindus have embraced forms of religious syncretism, as a large proportion of the Sindhi Hindus have been close to Islam through revering Sufi saints at Sufi shrines as well close to Sikhism through the Nanakpanthi, an approach in which Guru Nanak's teachings are respected but without necessarily following the other gurus nor identifying as Sikhs.

Majority of Sindhi Hindus belong to Lohana community who are historically traders, merchants and government officials, The Sindhi Lohanas are divided into different sub-groups for example Amils, Bhaibands, Hyderabadi Bhaiband (Sindhi Varki), Sahitis, Shikarpuris, Hatvaniya/Hatwara, Thattai, Bhagnari etc, these sub-groups have their own hundreds of surnames/castes. Other communities are Bhatia (Larai and Utradi), Arora and small Shikarpuri Khatris, all of them are called as Wāniya and Deewān in Sindh and belong to Waishya Varna of Hinduism. There are also few Sindhi Brahmins for example Pokarno and Sarsat or Sarsudh.