KARACHI, April 11: While law-enforcement personnel reached the gate of the factory in Korangi where a lynch mob was baying for the blood of a member of the minority Hindu community, they failed to stop the workmen from beating their colleague to death on April 8, it emerged on Friday.

Jagdeesh Kumar, 22, was killed for allegedly making blasphemous remarks about Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him).

Sources told Dawn that other than registering a case under Section 302 of the Pakistan Penal Code the police had done little by way of pursuing an investigation into the killing.

The murder case was registered by police on the complaint of the victim’s brother-in-law, Raju.

They said the police had showed up at the factory gate in response to a Rescue 15 call made from the factory well in time to rescue the victim and save his life. And yet, the sources said, they remained powerless to prevent the hysterical mob from lynching the workman, who hailed from Mirpurkhas.

“The incident took place during the lunch break. Hundreds of workers gathered outside the factory and started beating up Jagdeesh after a heated argument,” said a witness wishing not to be named.

“The factory management lost no time in informing the police about the feared outcome of the event and the area police promptly reached the spot in two vans within the next few minutes.”

Factory workers and members of the management who witnessed the blood-curdling spectacle told Dawn that the armed policemen failed to rescue Jagdeesh who was mercilessly tortured before being killed.

“Some of the workmen did try to help the victim but it was obviously not an easy task to reason with an emotionally charged mob,” said a worker, adding that the police could have handled the mob.

The sources said police incompetence was reflected not only in their inability to prevent a breakdown of law and order in their area of jurisdiction but also in their unwillingness to pursue the case. They added that police had not yet questioned a single witness in the Jagdeesh murder case.

“We have registered an FIR (207/2008) under Section 302 of the PPC for murder,” said an official at the Korangi police station.

“The case is not as simple as it appears. Its investigation needs cooperation from the factory management, workers and the victim’s family. Such cooperation has not yet been forthcoming.”

The victim’s family, which went to their ancestral town in Mirpurkhas for his funeral, has not yet returned.

He said a police investigation team visited the factory and the scene of crime twice after the incident but nobody appeared confident enough to share their recollections of the fateful day with police.

“Even the victim’s friends, who belong to the same religion and work at the same place, are not ready to provide us information and visit the police station despite repeated requests by us.”

However, he refused to be drawn on why the police failed to rescue the victim in spite of reaching the spot on time. The only observation he made was that it was impossible to control a charged mob maddened by religious frenzy.

“The mob even attempted to burn the victim’s body but the police thwarted their bid and moved the body to the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre,” said the official.

He said the investigation would make headway only if the victim’s brother-in-law, complainant of the murder case, approached the investigators.

“Otherwise it would be very difficult for the police to investigate the case where 500 to 600 people took part in the offence which led to the death of the victim and nobody is ready to cooperate with the investigators,” he said.

However, I.A. Rahman of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan told Dawn that such cases should be investigated in a transparent manner to unearth the real motive behind the killings.

“The government must ensure a compensation for such victims, as their numbers are increasing. Such incidents show growing intolerance in society and public approach towards law and regulations.”

Mr Rahman’s comments coincided with an HRCP demand for a judicial inquiry into the incident.