SAHIWAL: A middle-aged man, reportedly suffering from some mental illness, was booked under Section 295-B of the Pakistan Penal Code for allegedly burning the Holy Quran pages inside a mosque at 55/GD village, Noor Shah, on Tuesday afternoon.

Irfan Rasool, Station House Officer (SHO), Noor Shah Police Station, told Dawn that the suspect was charged on the complaint of one Mazhar Bashera, a resident of 55/GD village.

The SHO says he promptly reached the village, cordoned off the mosque premises and arrested the suspect.

Section 295-B pertains to the willful defilement, damage, or desecration of the Holy Quran or any extract thereof, and carries a punishment of life imprisonment.

Alleged incident occurred inside a village mosque where suspect was ‘residing temporarily’

According to police reports, the alleged incident occurred after Zohar prayers in a two-room mosque at the village, which has no regular prayer-leader and visited only by a small number of locals.

They say the complainant alleged that he witnessed the suspect committing the desecration of the holy book by burning some of its pages inside the mosque and immediately informed other residents of the village, who gathered at the mosque. He claims that other locals also “witnessed the desecration of the holy book by the suspect”.

The FIR registered by the Noor Shah police includes statements of two “eyewitnesses,” including one Shoukat, who confirmed the occurrence of the incident.

The complainant allegedly also recorded a video clip of the act on his cell phone, which was later handed over to the police.

In the video clip, the complainant could be heard asking the suspect, who was sitting on the floor, questions about his act. The suspect appears unaware that he is being filmed and seems mentally unstable.

Newly appointed District Police Officer (DPO) Usman Tipu also visited the mosque, collected video evidence and directed police to maintain law and order in the village.

To prevent any mob violence, the police immediately relocated the suspect to a “secure location.” Authorities acknowledged that the suspect appears mentally unstable and is not a resident of the 55/GD village.

The locals told the police that the suspect had been living at the mosque temporarily.

The DPO say that the suspect will undergo medical evaluation on Wednesday before being presented before a judicial magistrate.

Published in Dawn, November 6th, 2025