Pakistani court sentences one to death, five to life over lynching of student

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Pakistani court sentences one to death, five to life over lynching of student

Among 31 people convicted over the killing of a Pakistani student, one's been sentenced to death and five others to life. The 23-year-old journalism student was killed over blasphemy rumors that turned out to be false.

A Pakistani court on Wednesday convicted 31 people over the lynching of a 23-year-old university student in April 2017.

Mashal Khan, a journalism student, was dragged out of his dorm room at Abdul Wali Khan University in the northwestern town of Mardan on April 13, 2017, and killed by a mob following false rumors that he had shared blasphemous content on social media.

"Blasphemy" — the concept of insulting a religion, in this case Islam — is treated as a criminal offense in Pakistan. It can carry the death penalty.

A total of 57 people faced trial after the mob murdered Khan. 

The sentences: 

One man received the death sentence.
Five were handed life in prison.
An additional 25 were sentenced to four years in prison.
The remaining 26 were acquitted due to lack of evidence.

Government to challenge acquittals

Among the accused were students, teachers and some officials from the Abdul Wali Khan University, which is named after a secular political leader in northwest Pakistan. They all pleaded not guilty.

An investigation had found that the group planned the killing.

The sentences came six months after the trial of 61 suspects charged with murder and terrorism began in September 2017, police official Edhi Amin said. The proceedings were held inside a prison compound for security reasons.

Shaukat Ali Yusafzai, a government spokesman, said the government would challenge the acquittal of the 26.

The punishment for blasphamy in Pakistan: Blasphemy against Islam or the Prophet Muhammad can carry the death sentence in Pakistan, but mere allegations often suffice to spark mob violence. Pakistan's blasphemy laws became severe under former military ruler General Ziaul Haq in the 1980s.

How the Pakistani public responded: The death of Khan angered civil society and rights activists in Pakistan and saw people call for justice for Khan, as well as urging reform of blasphemy laws.

law/msh (AP, AFP, dpa, Reuters)

On Wednesday, an anti-terrorism court in the Pakistani city of Haripur sentenced one man to death, and five others to life imprisonment, for killing 23-year-old Mashal Khan in a mob violence incident last year. 57 out of 61 verdicts were announced, which took place behind closed doors for security reasons, and about 250 police officials and commandos were deployed.

Imran Sultan Mohammad, who had confessed about shooting Mashal Khan, was sentenced to death by judge Fazal-e-Subhan. Khan was a journalism student in Mardan's Abdul Wali Khan University, who was accused of blasphemy, an offense punishable by death in Pakistan, and was killed in mob violence on April 13. Later in June, police investigation revealed it was a false accusation as they found no evidence of blasphemy. Khan was stripped, beaten by dozens of people in the boys hostel, thrown from the second floor and shot dead — which was videographed and posted on social media.

Defense lawyer Saad Abbasi said 25 accused were sentenced to three-year prison, and 26 accused were released free from charges. Mashal Khan's brother Aimal Khan said, "Our demand was that all of the suspects should have been convicted [...] We ask the police to arrest the remaining suspects who are still at large and to bring them to trial." Police had arrested one suspect recently, who is yet to face the trial.

Last year after the death of Mashal Khan, speaking to BBC Urdu, his father Iqbal Khan said, "This issue is not just about my son. The issue is the mob came to the university, and challenged the government. So the government should question themselves, or do justice." He had also said, "In this country, freedom of speech, those who speak the truth, is restricted. They cut people's tongue. So I say they killed [my son], and then accused him [for such a serious crime]." ((hin))

According to police findings, the false accusation of blasphemy was started by a student group after Mashal Khan had criticised the university for hiking the fees, asserting corruption in the university. Some students had complained about Khan's alleged secular views to the university authorities.

Reportedly around a hundred relatives of accused waited outside the premises, for the verdict. "A day will come that the judge will answer the God. The verdict he has announced is unjust", said a guardian whose son was sentenced to three years' jail.

Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif condemned the lynching last year and said, "Let it be known to the perpetrators of this act that the state shall not tolerate citizens taking the law in their own hands. No father should have to send his child off to be educated, with the fear of having him return in a coffin."




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