MARDAN: A Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf’s worker has been killed by the mob for alleged blasphemy in the latest case of blasphemy-related violence in the country.
The event occurred in the evening while the PTI was holding a rally against inflation and other concerns in the Sawaldhir district of Mardan, according to Mardan District Police Chief Najib-ur-Rehman in an interview with Independent Urdu.
He stated, “The victim had joined PTI today and during the rally’s closing prayer, he uttered some words that the crowd claimed were blasphemous.”
According to Najeebur Rehman, the victim was then surrounded by the workers and beaten to death in a narrow street.
PTI worker who joined the party today in Mardan has been killed for blasphemy allegations during his speech in PTI’s jalsa, Mardan’s police chief told @indyurdu, adding, the worker uttered some ‘controversial’ words in his concluding speech of the jalsa.
— Izharullah (@Izhar2u) May 6, 2023
He said, “After killing, the workers were trying to mutilate the body of the deceased, but the body was taken into custody by the police.”
He said that during the incident, the police tried to save the victim but could not do anything in front of the crowd.
The police official further said that the tension still persists in the area and the police have started legal proceedings while they will also meet the relatives of the deceased in this regard.
In a video of the incident, it can be seen that the policemen and some people in the crowd are raising voices not to kill the victim.
Caretaker Chief Minister Azam Khan described the incident as unpleasant and sad and said that political meetings should be limited to political statements.
Pakistan’s blasphemy laws carry a potential death sentence for anyone who insults Islam, but critics say they have been used to settle personal scores in cases which can appear to have little or nothing to do with religion, according to human rights groups.
