World News | Man lynched for blasphemy in Mardan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa [Pakistan]May 7 (ANI): A man was arrested in Khyber-Purban after he was accused of blasphemy at a rally of Imran Khan’s political organization Pakistan Justice Independence (PTI) on Saturday night, Pakistani media reported. Mardan in Htunkhwa province was lynched by a violent mob.

A video has been circulating on social media in which several people can be seen violently beating the man. The mob even dragged and brutally beat the body of a man believed to be in his 40s in the Sawal Dher area.

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The deceased has been identified as Maulana Nigar Alam. He was accused of declaring to the crowd at a Pakistan Justice Movement (PTI) rally that he respected PTI chairman Imran Khan like a prophet because he was an honest man, the Friday Times reported.

The alleged statement quickly sparked outrage gathered at the scene. Some reported that police arrived and pushed the crowd away. People attacked the man while he was talking to some of the elders there.

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Meanwhile, a report cited by The Friday Times said that prior to the incident, some clergymen belonging to the Deobandi sect had called for the prosecution of the victim for blasphemy.

According to the Friday Times, various social media users believe that the man’s sensitive remarks outraged the public and led to the man’s lynching.

International and Pakistani human rights groups say charges of blasphemy are often used to intimidate religious minorities and calculate personal vendettas. The Pakistani government has long been under pressure to change the country’s blasphemy laws, but other political forces in the country have resisted strongly, according to media reports.

In early February, a person accused of blasphemy in Nankana Sahib was forcibly taken out of a police station by an angry crowd and tortured to death.

According to reports, the incident took place in the Warburton area, and the accused, a Muslim male, was detained on charges of blasphemy and witchcraft for using a photo of his ex-wife. The man was also accused of setting pages of the Koran on fire. He was recently released after two years in prison, The Friday Times reported.

The mob attacked the police station where the defendants were being held, while the police station SHO and other law enforcement officers fled to save their lives.

The Friday Times quoted sources as saying that the crowd dragged the defendant out of the detention center, tortured him to death and set his body on fire.

Prime Minister Sheikh Baz Sharif ordered an investigation into the incident. According to the Friday Times, he asked why the police did not stop the violent crowd and said that the rule of law must be ensured at all costs. (Arnie)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from a Syndicated News feed, the content body may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)