An elderly Christian was fighting for his life within the hospital after a Muslim mob in Pakistan attempted to kill him as a consequence of a neighbour falsely accusing him of burning pages of the Quran, his family said.
The mob also ransacked the home and burned the shoe factory of the 74-year-old victim, Nazeer Masih Gill, in Sargodha city’s Mujahid Colony, said his nephew Irfan Gill.
Nazeer Gill had burned some wastepaper on the street outside his house in Mujahid Colony, Sargodha District, Punjab Province, on Saturday morning when the Muslim neighbour accused him of desecrating the Quran and instigated local Muslims to attack him, his nephew said.
Area Muslims Ayub Gondal and Muhammad Ikraam were jealous of the success of the shoe factory of Nazeer Gill and his son Sultan Gill and had pressured them to present up possession of some shops that they had bought two months ago, Irfan Gill told Christian Daily International-Morning Star News by phone. The Muslims had been on the lookout for a possibility to attack Nazeer Gill’s family after they refused to give up to their demands, he said.
“On Thursday, my uncle Nazeer’s teenage grandsons, Kashif and Jamal, had an altercation with Gondal’s son over the identical issue,” Irfan Gill said. “Such clashes have been occurring ever since they began to exert pressure on our family, but we didn’t anticipate that they’d go to this extent.”
Nazeer Gill had burned the wastepaper and gone inside his home when someone threw a replica of the Quran into the hearth, burning the Muslim holy book, Irfan Gill said.
“We got here to know in regards to the incident around 8 a.m. when announcements were made out of mosque loudspeakers urging people to collect on the scene,” he told Christian Daily International-Morning Star News. “Within minutes, a mob assembled outside my uncle’s home and stormed inside.”
They forced him out to the road and commenced to hit him with bricks, stones and sticks, he said.
“In the meantime, a number of the protesters ransacked the home after which went to the shoe factory, which can be positioned in the identical street in a house. When they reached there, the protesters torched it, burning every little thing inside,” Irfan Gill said.
Most Christian residents fled their houses after they saw the mobs gathering and raising slogans related to an extremist Islamist political party, he said.
“Some sought refuge within the nearby churches while others left after locking their homes, fearing for the security of their families,” he said. “The situation would have gotten worse if the police had not arrived in time.”
The mob tried their best to lynch his uncle and likewise attempted to wreck the ambulance that police summoned to evacuate him, he said.
“The police couldn’t stop the mob from torturing my uncle and damaging the property, but they did save the lives of my cousin and his family by spiriting them away from the world,” he said.
Irfan Gill, a member of the local Presbyterian church, said his uncle was placed on a ventilator in a hospital, where his condition was said to be critical.
“We are all in hiding in the meanwhile, and the police aren’t allowing any relative to see my uncle,” he said. “He has sustained serious injuries to his head and body, and we are able to only pray and hope that he survives. It can be nothing in need of a miracle for us.”
Assault
Eyewitnesses described the mob as highly charged, with several people filming the incident on their phones.
An area Christian resident said the mob attacked Nazeer Gill and his property without attempting to confirm facts.
“They shouted slogans of ‘Labbaik Ya Rasool Allah,’ or, ‘Prophet I’m here,’ as they brought out furniture and packaging material from Nazeer’s house and factory and burned them,” the source told Christian Daily International-Morning Star News on condition of anonymity, fearing reprisal from the Muslims.
The resident said an associate of Gondal, Muhammad Ikraam, was a ticket-holder of the extremist Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), and that he played a central role in mustering the mob.
“Several Christian families sought refuge in churches because we couldn’t leave the colony in time,” the source said. “Inside the church, we prayed for God’s intervention since it seemed that the mob wouldn’t stop until that they had destroyed every little thing.”
A big police contingent led by the district police chief eventually arrived and were capable of disperse the mob by firing tear gas shells, he said, adding that the mob retaliated by pelting stones, injuring several policemen. Punjab Police Inspector General Dr. Usman Anwar and Punjab Home Secretary Noorul Amin Mengal also reached the world later within the day to analyze.
Anwar said in a press statement that police arrested 15 Muslims involved within the violence and were working to discover other perpetrators. He said 2,000 police personnel were deployed to the world to revive order and urged Christians who had fled their homes to return, assuring them of their safety.
Punjab Home Secretary Mengal said violence against anyone under religious pretexts wouldn’t be tolerated. He added that motion could be taken against suspects accused following investigation.
At the identical time police have registered a case against the victim under sections 295-A and 295-B of the blasphemy laws and Section 9 of the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) to placate furious Muslims. Section 295-A calls for imprisonment of as much as 10 years for deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings; Section 295-B calls for all times imprisonment for anyone accused of willfully defiling or desecrating the Quran; Section 9 of ATA prescribes punishment of as much as five of prison for instigating sectarian hatred.
Christians Demand Justice
National Council of the Churches in Pakistan (NCCP) President Bishop Azad Marshall said in a press statement that the distressing incident was harking back to the attack on Christians in Jaranwala in August of last 12 months.
“We are alarmed by the reported presence of law enforcement officers through the attack who didn’t take motion, suggesting a grave dereliction of duty in protecting vulnerable communities,” Marshall said. “This occurrence underscores the critical need for decisive actions to counter extremism and safeguard religious minorities.”
The senior church leader called for a comprehensive and impartial investigation as per the directives of the Supreme Court into the actions of each perpetrators and negligent law enforcement officials.
“Furthermore, we implore the authorities to ensure the protection of people falsely accused of blasphemy and to take essential measures to reestablish peace and security in Sargodha,” he said.
Minorities Alliance Pakistan Chairman Akmal Bhatti said that the mob violence in Sargodha wouldn’t have happened had the federal government sternly handled perpetrators of the Jaranwala attacks.
“Almost all of those arrested within the Jaranwala attacks cases have walked free on bail as a consequence of poor investigation and weak prosecution,” Bhatti told Christian Daily International-Morning Star News. “Such lapses embolden the perpetrators who exploit religious sentiments for his or her criminal acts.”
He added that if the federal government was serious in protecting religious minorities, then it should first be certain that the blasphemy laws aren’t misused and that those that incite violence are made an example for others.
Advocacy movement Minority Rights March in an announcement condemned the Punjab government and police for “failing to learn from the Jaranwala attacks last 12 months and taking any concrete measures to curtail the growing radicalism.”
“We condemn the state of facilitating once-banned outfits comparable to TLP [Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan], leading to a Pakistan which is becoming unlivable for religious minorities with each passing day,” the group said.
They demanded an “expeditious inquiry and motion through a judicial commission and the one-man commission led by Dr. Shoaib Suddle… not only against the mob involved within the attack but against the police officials and officers of the Punjab government who did not take preemptive measures.”
Pakistan ranked seventh on Open Doors’ 2024 World Watch List of essentially the most difficult places to be a Christian, because it was the previous 12 months.
© 2024 Christian Daily International-Morning Star News
