Arifwala tense after man accused of ‘desecration’

Published August 13, 2015
Citizens from different walks of life stormed main railway crossing and stopped karachibound Farid Express for 30 minutes. — Photo by author
Citizens from different walks of life stormed main railway crossing and stopped karachibound Farid Express for 30 minutes. — Photo by author
Citizens from different walks of life stormed main railway crossing and stopped karachibound Farid Express for 30 minutes. — Photo by author
Citizens from different walks of life stormed main railway crossing and stopped karachibound Farid Express for 30 minutes. — Photo by author

SAHIWAL: Tension gripped Arifwala city on Wednesday, after a man allegedly desecrated the Holy Quran in its Muzaffarabad locality.

According to local sources, Sabir, a resident of Muzaffarabad locality was accused by his sisters of burning pages of the holy book on the advice of a practitioner of black magic to bring back his estranged wife.

Soon, the news spread in the city, prompting groups of protesters to burn tyres on main roads, intersections and markets, the sources said.

They said an angry mob also stopped the Karachi-bound Farid Express at the local railway station.

Pakpattan District Police Officer Shah Nawaz Sandhela told Dawn that on being informed of the incident, police immediately took the suspect into custody and shifted him to an undisclosed location.

Arifwala city police station SHO Nisar Munjh remained tight-lipped about the incident.

Mian Arshad, owner of a shop in a local market, Resham Gali, said all the main markets in the city were closed in protest against the incident.

Meanwhile, the protesters, mostly from religious seminaries, and traders gathered in different bazaars where they forced shops to close. They demanded the suspect be handed over to them.

Police mobiles were patrolling the main bazaars to avert any untoward incident, the sources said.

It is learnt that city police have registered an FIR under Section 295-D of the Pakistan Penal Code against the suspect.

Published in Dawn, August 13th, 2015

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