Leading Islamic clerics have called “un-Islamic” the brutal lynching of a Sri Lankan executive, Priyantha Kumara, in Sialkot last Friday, calling for collective efforts to bring an end to extremism and violence in the society.

“It was an inhuman act. Accusing someone of blasphemy without proof is not in accordance with the Shariah,” said Dr Qibla Ayaz, chairman of the Council of Islamic Ideology (CII), while reading out a joint statement from the ulema after meeting the Sri Lankan High Commissioner, Mohan Wijewickrama, at the Sri Lankan Embassy in Islamabad.

“This tragedy has caused anger across the world as a mob brutally killed a man and later burned his body,” he added. Speaking on the occasion, he said religious clerics from all sects have gathered and shown their solidarity against the heinous incident.

Dr Ayaz said that the mob violence was against the teachings of the Holy Quran, and the Constitution of Pakistan. He lamented that the actions of some people had brought shame to all the people of Pakistan. “Strict action must be taken against the miscreants,” he said. He said that there was no place for extremism and violence in Islam. He said that clerics should play their role to eliminate extremism.

Mufti Muneeb ur Rehman, Mufti Muhammad Taqi Usmani and Maulana Tariq Jamil also condemned the extrajudicial killing.

“There is no justification for taking the law into one’s own hands,” said Mufti Muneeb ur Rehman, a senior scholar of the Ahle Sunnat Wal Jamaat and a former chairman of the Ruet-i-Hilal Committee. He said taking law into one’s own hands created anarchy and lawlessness in the society.

Mufti Muhammad Taqi Usmani said, “Blasphemy is an extremely heinous crime but it requires equally strong evidence to prove it. Taking it upon oneself to lay an accusation and mete out the punishment in a barbaric and forbidden way cannot be justified in any way. The Sialkot incident has disgraced this country and the Muslim ummah.”

Dr Qibla Ayaz, chairman of the Council of Islamic Ideology (CII), said there was no place for extremism and violence in Islam, adding that clerics should play their role to eliminate extremism.

Maulana Tariq Jamil, said the violence was un-Islamic. In a tweet following the incident, he wrote: “It is against Islamic teachings to take law into one’s own hands based on a mere accusation. There is no place for violence and extremism in Islam. Scholars should play a positive role in preventing extremism.”

Siraj ul Haq, central leader of the Jamaat-i-Islami, demanded strict action against those involved in the killing of the Sri Lankan citizen.

Hafiz Tahir Mehmood Ashrafi, the prime minister’s special representative on religious affairs, demanded exemplary punishment for the perpetrators to prevent a reoccurrence of such incidents. Speaking at the Quran and Seerat Academy, he said that the murderers had not only brought a bad name to the religion but also to the country.

He said Pakistan had laws that dealt with Tauheen-i-Namoos-i-Risalat and Tauheen-i-Mazhab. No one was allowed to take law into their hands. He said the courts and legal process decided complaints in this regard.

“We are ashamed and apologise to Sri Lanka”. He hoped that everyone will work together to eliminate extremism from Pakistan.

Ashrafi said Islam was a religion of peace and had always rejected violence. Those who killed the man had gone against Islamic teachings and laws, he said, demanding that they be punished severely.

Maulana Fazl ur Rehman, chief of the Jamiat Ulemai-i-Islam, issued an unconditional condemnation of the incident. He said the government had a responsibility to stop such incidents.

Dr Tahir ul Qadri, the founding leader of the Minhaj ul Quran International (MQI), too, condemned the incident. He said mob violence was against the peaceful teachings of Islam and had harmed Pakistan’s image abroad.

The writer works for The News. He can be reached at sherali9984@gmail.com