LAHORE: Condemning the Swat mob lynching incident, Pakistan Ulema Council chairman Hafiz Tahir Ashrafi has said that the process of being judge and jury should end.

Speaking at a press conference here on Sunday, he said that a person was burnt in Swat in the name of the Holy Quran, while the Quran says that killing an innocent person is like killing the entire humanity.

He said that none could be empowered to become a plaintiff, judge and executioner in the same case.

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Referring to the misuse of religious emotions, he recalled that Joseph Colony had been burnt in Lahore and all the accused had been acquitted of the charge defaming Islam and Pakistan.

He lamented that the culprits known to all were not punished, while prosecution was such a long process that the accused became heroes.

He demanded that the Chief Justice of Pakistan should put aside all political cases and those involving VVIPs for a week and should instead focus on blasphemy cases to punish the guilty in time, while freeing those who were found to be innocent.

Published in Dawn, June 24th, 2024