Peshawar: A man was killed by an angry mob for allegedly desecrating the Holy Quran in the scenic Swat district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in northwest Pakistan and eight people were injured in the ensuing unrest, police said. District Police Officer (DPO), Swat, Zahidullah said the man from Sialkot district of Punjab allegedly burnt some pages of the Holy Quran in Madyan tehsil of Swat on Thursday night.
The suspect was taken into custody and brought to Madyan police station. A mob gathered outside the police station and demanded that he be handed over. After the police refused to do so, the mob opened fire and the police retaliated. One person was seriously injured in the exchange of fire and was transferred to the Madyan Hospital, the DPO said. The mob then set the police station on fire. Later, some people entered the police station, shot the suspect, dragged his body to Madyan Adda and hanged it there, Zahidullah said.
Eight people were injured in the unrest triggered by the incident. Heavy police deployment has been made in Madyan and efforts are being made to bring the situation under control, he added.
Chief Minister KPK Ali Amin Gandapur has taken note of the desecration incident and sought a report from the provincial police chief. The CM directed the IGP to take emergency steps to control the situation and urged people to remain calm and peaceful.
Second incident of mob killing
The latest incident of mob violence nearly a month after a mob led by radical Islamists unleashed an attack on Christians in Pakistan's Punjab province over the allegations of desecration of the Quran that left at least two members from the minority community injured, one of them seriously. Later, he succumbed to his injuries. The incident took place in Mujahid Colony Sargodha district of Punjab, some 200 km from Lahore in the morning. Police claim to have reached the scene on time to control the situation.
Several video clips of the mob attack on the properties of the Christian community are doing rounds on social media. The mob led by radical Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) activists attacked the Christian community, burning and ransacking their property. According to senior Punjab police officer Asad Ejaz Malhi, a heavy contingent of police has reached Mujahid Colony and dispersed the mob which had surrounded some houses (of Christians) over the allegations of the desecration of the Quran. He said one injured person has been shifted to a hospital and police have been deployed there to maintain law and order.
(With inputs from agency)
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