Probe launched into lynching of man by mob in Madyan

MINGORA: The police on Friday formally launched investigation into the Madyan mob lynching incident after registering the first information report (FIR).

Regional Police Officer, Malakand Region, Mohammad Ali visited the Madyan Police Station, which was torched by an angry mob after a man was accused of desecrating the Holy Quran. The police had taken the man belonging to Punjab into protective custody but the angry mob made announcements from mosques using loudspeakers asking the local people to converge on the police station.

The RPO directed the officials to identify the people who had torched the building of the police station and the vehicles. The RPO directed the police to ensure transparency in the investigation.

The shopkeepers at Madyan Bazaar had brought down the shutters and the Kalam-Madyan Road was blocked in protest.

Meanwhile, the Kalam-Madyan Road was reopened to traffic while the Madyan Bazaar partially opened. The police said that normalcy had started returning to the town after the lynching incident. The police had deployed additional cops to ensure law and order and bring the situation under control. It was learnt that 11 civilians and five policemen were injured in the mayhem.

The angry mob stormed the police station when the cops refused to hand him over to the crowd. The police officials, who fired into the air to disperse the people, fled the scene to save themselves as the people outnumbered the cops. Later, reinforcements were sent to the area to bring the situation under control. However, the people had burnt the man alive by then. The suspect, who belonged to Sialkot was visiting the Swat valley as a tourist and staying at a hotel in Madyan.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur had taken notice of the incident and directed the provincial police chief to submit a report about it.