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| September 12, 2005 | Monday | Sha’aban 7, 1426 |
Mob sets police post on fire: Desecration of Holy Quran
SARGODHA, Sept 11: A mob torched the Farooka police post in Sahiwal tehsil, some 52km from here, on Saturday night following reports that the post in-charge had desecrated the Holy Quran. Reports said over 3,000 people armed with lethal weapons gathered around the police post after an announcement by some men that sub-inspector Mukhtar Ahmad had desecrated the Quran. Some of them climbed the roof of the post and set the record on fire after sprinkling kerosene through a hole.
The protesters also uprooted the wireless tower and damaged other property.
In an exchange of fire between the mob and the police, wireless operator Rab Nawaz, constable Allah Ditta and some protesters were also injured.
In a briefing, DPO Mohammad Naeem said, in fact, some people with an ulterior motive had instigated the people to attack the police post. He, however, denied that the holy book had been desecrated.
He said a police party raided the house of Ramzan on Friday night, but some inmates, including women, thrashed two constables. However, the accused were taken into custody.
The accused party lodged a complaint against the police party for violating the sanctity of chaddar and chardewari, but in the application no incident of desecration was alleged.
The DPO said the Sahiwal DSP was looking into the matter, but on Saturday night an announcement about the desecration of the Holy Quran was made from different mosques of the town. The DSP reached the spot and held talks with the protesters, including elected representatives. The matter was about to be resolved when some miscreants attacked the police post and set its record and a motorcycle to fire.
He said according to a preliminary inquiry held by chief minister’s adviser Asghar Kalayar, the Holy Quran had fallen from the hands of a boy and not from any policeman’s.
He said an FIR had been lodged against over 2,000 people, and some 39 out of 60 nominated accused arrested. He said an investigating team had also been constituted under the supervision of SP investigation Abdul Hameed.
Deputy inspector general of police Pervaiz Akbar said if any police officer was found guilty, he would be taken to task.
Eyewitnesses said a police party raided the house of labourer Ramzan to arrest him because he had left the job of newly-elected Farooka union council councillor Amir Husain after taking some advance from him. Ramzan told the raiding party that he was ready to pay the money if outstanding against him, but the police thrashed him.
They said when his sister-in-law, Kausar Bibi, holding the Holy Quran in her hands begged for mercy, SI Mukhtar pushed her as a result of which she along with her three-month-old daughter and the Holy Quran fell on the ground.
The matter was resolved by the newly-elected nazim, but the next evening his rival who faced a defeat in the local polls at his hands instigated the people to attack the police station.
Kausar Bibi and her suckling were admitted to a hospital where the condition of the baby is stated to be critical.
Police high-ups claim that normalcy has been restored, but people are still in a state of fear as they are being harassed allegedly by police and the Elite Force personnel.
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