GUJRAT: Police on Friday arrested a Christian man hailing from Kharian tehsil after registering a case against him on a blasphemy charge.

They moved the suspect to another place instead of keeping him in the lock-up after rumours started to circulate that religious groups intended to attack the police station.

Nadeem Ahmed, owner of an electric shop in Dinga town, lodged a complaint with police that his friend Ishtiaq Ahmed Jalali had told him on Thursday that a sweeper working at a private hospital had allegedly uttered provocative remarks about the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him).

Nadeem claimed that when he spoke to the sweeper to verify the allegation, the latter repeated the remarks. Gujrat SP Maaz Zafar rushed to Dinga after police received the complaint. He told Dawn that the situation was under control and police contingents were patrolling the town.

The case against the suspect has been registered under Section 295-C (Use of derogatory remarks, etc, in respect of the Holy Prophet) of the Pakistan Penal Code.

Published in Dawn, July 15th, 2017