HARIPUR – The anti-terrorism court (ATC) in Haripur has sentenced oneaccused to death and five others to 25 years in jail in Mashaal Khanlynching case.
ATC Jugde Fazal Khan Subhan read out the verdicts against each of the 57men accused in the case one-by-one. Tight security arrangements were inplace due to the sensitivity of the case, with roads leading to the HaripurCentral jail being closed.
The court has also acquitted 26 accused in the case.
Meanwhile, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has decided to file an appealagainst acquittal of suspects in the case.
Mashal Khan, a mass communication student at Mardan’s Abdul Wali KhanUniversity, was lynched to death by a mob of angry students in 13th Aprillast year over rumors that he and his friends committed blasphemy.
After Mashal’s murder, Supreme Court of Pakistan’s chief justice tooknotice and ordered a judicial inquiry. For this purpose, a jointinvestigation team was formed to investigate what led to the gruesomemurder. The JIT report had revealed that the lynching Mashal who wasfalsely accused of blasphemy was organized by other students from his ownsecular political group who viewed him as a rival and faculty members whoresented his criticism of the university.
The report also revealed that officials from the university administrationwere also involved in his murder. The report also stated that there were nosolid proofs found about blasphemy committed by Mashal and his friends.
The brutality of the attack, recorded on a mobile phone camera, had shockedthe public and led to widespread condemnation, including from prominentclerics.