Mardan Nazim apologises to party leaders for ‘attitude’

Mashal’s lynching case

MARDAN: Awami National Party’s district head Himayatullah Mayar apologised to his party leaders for his ‘policy and attitude’ in the Mashal Khan lynching case, sources said.

On April 13, a mob of students and employees of the Abdul Wali Khan University lynched Mashal Khan, a student of the Journalism and Mass Communication Department, after accusing him of blasphemy.

The sources said that some of the accused in the Mashal Khan murder case told the court that he had not committed blasphemy. However, the other accused alleged that Mashal Khan had committed blasphemy.

Soon after the incident, Himayatullah Mayar, who is also District Nazim Mardan, in a statement asked the ANP workers and activists to avoid commenting on the murder case until the incident’s final report was made public.

The sources said that Himayatullah Mayar faced criticism from the party leadership and workers after making the statement.Later, ANP provincial President Ameer Haider Hoti issued a show-cause notice to Himayatullah Mayar to explain his position for deviating from the party line on the issue. He was given three days to clarify his position or face action.

In his reply to the show-cause notice, Himayatullah Mayar said that his stance was not different from that of the party. However, he tendered an apology to the party leadership on the issue.

Meanwhile, the students of the Abdul Wali Khan University  have asked the government to reopen the university so that they could pursue their education. The university was closed down on April 12 soon after Mashal Khan was lynched and another student Abdullah was wounded by the enraged students and employees after accusing them of committing blasphemy.