PESHAWAR: Violent protests erupted in Tangi, Charsadda district after the alleged desecration of the Holy Qura’an as a result Mandni police station and three outposts were set on fire.
The police said that after registering the FIR, the accused was arrested and further investigation was underway. The Police said that when people got information about the arrest, they gathered outside the police station and demanded that the man be handed over to them.
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According to an eyewitness, rumors of alleged blasphemy of the holy Qur’an had been circulating in the area since Sunday morning and then in the evening rumors spread that the man behind the blasphemy had been taken to the police station. So, they marched on the police station.
At first the sloganeering continued outside the station and then suddenly the mob stormed and set Mandani police station on fire. The police said that several vehicles were also set ablaze. The protesters did not stop here and attacked several check posts in the Tangi Tehsil, demanding the government to handover the accused. According to an eyewitness, the policemen in the police station kept trying to contain the protesters for a long time but the number of protesters was increasing while due to road blockade, the police was not getting help.
According to our correspondent Faiz Mohammad from Charsadda, as the news of blasphemy spread throughout the district through social media and other sources, people started march on the Mandani police station. Police fired tear gas shells but it was impossible for police station with limited number of personnel to control the raging mob. However, the accused is still under police protection and the protestors were unable to reach to him.
According to Faiz Mohammad, everything in the police station has been burnt to ashes including the whole record. After setting fire to Mandni police station, angry protesters covered three police posts and set fire to Zem, Shakoor Shaheed Chawki and Sherpao post and also took weapons from police station. The situation in the city was tense till late night as police had fled from stations and outposts.
Member Provincial Assembly (MPA) Khalid Khan Mohmand, Mufti Pir Gohar Ali, Haji Muhammad Ibrahim Mohmand Advocate and other scholars and people kept trying to persuade the mob to return to their homes.
Earlier, a protest was organized by JUI in Mandni Bazaar against the incident. Tehsil candidates Haji Danishmand, Qari Amjad, Maulana Samiullah and others condemned the desecration of Quran and demanded that the accused by severely punished. A meeting was held in the room of MPA Khalid Khan Mohmand in which Shaykh-ul-Hadeeth Maulana Muhammad Idrees, Maulana Mufti Pir Gohar Ali, DC Saadat Hassan, AC Charsadda Adnan Jamil, Tehsil candidates Yahya Jan Mohmand, MNA Anwar Taj, Chairman Haji Muhammad Ibrahim Advocate, Ameer Misbahullah of Jamaat-e-Islami and others participated. They appealed to the protesters not to damage government property.
Officials told the media that the accused had been shifted to a safe place due to fear of a backlash from the mob and a case had been registered against him. The police said that the accused is mentally ill however, they have registered the case and he would be presented before the court soon.