Ahsan Iqbal, Pakistan’s Planning Minister, severely criticized killing of a man in Swat town for allegedly desecrating the Quran and expressed his regret over how religion has been used as a weapon to justify “street justice” and “vigilante action”. The government ruling party leader in Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) made these remarks during the budget debate in the National Assembly, according to Dawn newspaper. Parliament, he said, needed to take stern notice of “mob justice” that had brought us down “to the brink”, he added.
On Thursday night, an infuriated mob killed a tourist through shooting at him and then took him around their town before hanging him publicly because he was accused of burning pages from Islam’s holy book.
Muhammad Ismail is aged 40 and is from Sialkot district in Punjab province. He had burnt Islam’s holy book in Madyan tehsil of Swat district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province while visiting this hill resort town located in northwest of Pakistan.
Ghulam Mustafa Shah interrupted during his talk with Deputy Speaker of Pakistan Peoples Party and Iqbal remarked that another mob lynching has happened in Swat thus making our country more susceptible to questions.
Moreover, the PML-N secretary general who is 65 years old said that “we could move past it” if this was an isolated incident. However, he also talked about similar episodes which took place earlier on at Sialkot as well as Jaranwala besides Sargodha where mobs killed alleged blasphemers.
The minister also remembered when one of the supporters of Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan tried to kill him last year and he thanked God for sparing his life after being shot by an extremist.
Iqbal added that our nation must take notice of this incident since we are falling apart; as we are now at a point where religion is being used to justify mob violence and street justice in flagrant disregard of the Constitution, the law and the state.
According to Islam “heretics should be given respect even in death”, he said.
He criticized them saying, “they not only kill people but also set their bodies on fire afterwards and then make a public spectacle of it. It’s downright disgraceful.”
Furthermore, Iqbal asked that a committee be constituted to investigate those attacks organized by crowds.
