Churches were demolished in Pakistan in the name of sacrilege with Quran, US expressed concern, said this
In Pakistan, a mob destroyed five churches on Wednesday, allegedly in the name of sacrilege of the Quran.
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Five churches were demolished in Pakistan on Wednesday in the name of sacrilege of Quran. When the incident came to light, the US expressed concern and urged an investigation into the attacks.
This is the case
Significantly, atrocities against minorities in the name of religion are not a new thing in Pakistan. Cases like violence in the name of blasphemy often come to the fore here. Something similar came to the fore on Wednesday in Jaranwala area in Faizalabad city of Punjab province of Pakistan. Here the mob allegedly destroyed five churches in the name of sacrilege of the Quran. Not only this, they also burnt the houses of the people living near the church, beat them up and looted them. During this, the police was also present on the spot, who remained a spectator. Later, Pakistan Rangers were called in to control the situation and protect the Christian community living in Chamra Mandi Jaranwala.
Violence is not a form of expression
US State Department spokesman Vedant Patel said that we are deeply concerned that churches and homes were targeted in Pakistan in response to the desecration of the Quran. He said that America supports free expression, but can never accept violence or the threat of violence as a form of expression.
Patel urged the Pakistani authorities to investigate these incidents and urged the people to maintain peace.
Accused of insulting the Quran
According to the information, the crowd first alleged that the church talks anti-Islam, then alleged that the Koran has been insulted. The mob later destroyed five churches with petrol bombs and stone-pelting, accusing them of sacrilege with Islam. At the same time, the crowd did not stop at this. The attackers also hurled petrol bombs at the homes of Christian residents, looting and ransacking their homes. During this, if anyone tried to protest, he was badly beaten with sticks, sticks, kicks and punches.
Many videos of this incident are going viral on social media. In these, people are talking about burning the churches, calling them places of sacrilege. Not only this, many people are also talking about killing and burning the people of the church alive. It is also visible in the viral video that many policemen were present on the spot, who were standing there watching the bus.
Pakistan Rangers were called
Faisalabad's assistant commissioner has called in Pakistan Rangers to bring the situation under control. In a letter to the Punjab Home Department, he said that despite the best efforts of the police in the area, the law and order situation is still very sensitive and vulnerable. In such a situation, you are requested to send at least two companies of Rangers to control the law and order situation in Jaranwala Tehsil Faisalabad.
Punjab police chief Usman Anwar said police were negotiating with the protesters and the area had been cordoned off. Bishop Azad Marshall, head of the Church of Pakistan, said, after that there is no courage left to say anything. This horrifying incident cannot be described in words. Churches are being burnt. Christians are being persecuted by falsely accusing the Bible of being torn to pieces and the Quran desecrated.
Accusations against siblings
Mohammad Afzal and four other Muslims of Chamra Mandi accused Raja Ameer Masih and his sister Raki Masih of insulting the Quran and making derogatory remarks about the Prophet, said Asif Ali, officer of the Jaranwala City Police Station. The police also registered a case against both brother and sister under sections 295-C and 295-B of the Pakistan Penal Code and have formed a police team to arrest them. He also informed that the police have secured the house of the accused. Officials said the entire family, including Raja Amir Masih, is absconding. And no FIR has been registered so far for vandalizing the churches.
At the same time, Interim Prime Minister Anwar ul Haq Kakar has reacted to this. He has said that strict action will be taken against those who violate the law and target minorities. He has been asked to catch all the culprits.
From 23 only 3 percent remained minority
We demand justice and action from the government, courts and police, said Naveed Walter, head of Human Rights Focus Pakistan. The minorities should be given immediate protection and they should be assured that the country whose independence day they celebrated with full gusto the day before, considers them as their own. Walter said, since independence in 1947, the population of minorities in Pakistan has come down from 23 per cent to 3 per cent. It is a matter of thinking, why did this happen?
Seeds of religious discrimination in the constitution
Atrocities on religious ethnic minorities in Pakistan are actually a part of the political system there. The biggest reason for this is that when the constitution was made in 1973, its Article 2 said that Islam would be a state religion. After this, in Article 41(2) it has been declared that the President of Pakistan shall be a Muslim only. At the same time, it was said in Article 91 that the Prime Minister must be a Muslim. This process did not stop here, but several amendments were made to the constitution of Pakistan in the 1980s, during this time sacrilege law was brought, due to which lakhs of people from the minority community were either killed, or converted to Islam or are rotting in jails.