Another heinous religion-motivated lynching took place in Pakistan, reports said on Saturday. The mob attack happened in Nankana Sahib city in the Punjab province of the country.
Hundreds of violent people stormed the police station where a man accused of blasphemy was lodged and assaulted the man until he died, police said. The violent mob then set the man's body on fire, Daily Pakistan reported. Graphic clips circulating on social media caught the gruesome acts live, the newspaper reported.
Crime Inside Police Station
Pakistan Punjab Inspector General of Police Usman Anwar confirmed the lynching took place inside the police station. "No one is allowed to take the law into their hands no matter how influential they are ... Strict department and legal action will be taken against those responsible for the incident, as well as the perpetrators of negligence and incompetence," the IG said.
The police authorities also suspended two senior officials for their failure to stop the lynching inside the police station.
One video circulating online showed violent mobs using a ladder to breach the gates of the police station and go inside, even as a raucous crowds shuffled around and cheered on. Another video shows startling visuals in which young children are seen inside the police station where the assault on the man apparently took place.
Factory Manager Lynched
In December 2021, a Sri Lankan export manager was tortured to death by a mob in Pakistan's Sialkot over allegations of blasphemy. The mob allegedly burnt his body on the streets. The factory workers had accused Priyantha, the general manager of Rajko industries, of tearing the poster of Prophet Mohammed and throwing it in the trash.
Blasphemy carries the death penalty in Pakistan. Most often innocent minority community members are victimized using this highly arbitrary provision. According to some reports, the Sri Lankan factory manager had not committed any blasphemy; he had unwittingly thrown a paper that carried the name of the prophet.
Minority Attacks
According to official figures, a whopping 7.5 million Hindus live in Pakistan, which is an Islamic nation built on theocracy. Punjab province has a sizeable Hindu minority. However, attacks on Hindus, desecration of Hindu temples, false cases of blasphemy and forced conversions into Islam are taking place unabated.
According to IANS, the Chairman of Pakistan Ulema Council (PUC) condemned the latest lynching. "Inhuman torture and killing a person accused of blasphemy and attacking the police station is regrettable and condemnable," the official said, the news agency reported.
