An anti-terrorism court has sentenced 14 men to life imprisonments for lynching a man in 2012.

On July 3, 2012, an enraged mob had stormed the Channi Goth police station, and dragged a mentally-challenged man out of the lockup. They had beaten him up and set his body on fire.

Earlier, police had taken the man into custody over claims that he had committed blasphemy.

The Bahawalpur anti-terrorism Court, headed by Judge Nasir Hussein, has now announced its verdict, convicting 14 accused and sentencing them to life imprisonment for lynching the insane man on the charge of committing blasphemy. The ATC also convicted them of burning police vehicles, breaking the lockup at Channi Goth police station in 2012.

According to the FIR No 191/12 registered with the Channi Goth police station, the accused were charged with attacking police station and freeing a mentally retarded man from custody after ransacking the station. The accused held the man responsible for alleged desecration. The accused took the man from police lockup by force. They critically injured ten police personnel, burnt police station and police vehicles.

On July 3, 2012, an enraged mob had stormed the Channi Goth police station, and dragged a mentally-challenged man out of the lockup. They had beaten him up and then set his body on fire. Earlier, police had taken the man into custody over claims that he had committed blasphemy.

The court acquitted 119 accused, giving them the benefit of the doubt.

The convicts will have to undergo three years rigorous imprisonment with a fine of Rs 50,000 and in case of non-payment of fine, he will further undergo three months’ imprisonment. They are also directed to pay Rs 300,000 as compensation to the legal heirs of the deceased and in case of non-payment of compensation they shall face imprisonment for six months.

“Mob attacks are a sign of a society where ignorance, an incompetent justice system and human rights violations impede access to justice. The root cause of the phenomenon is a lack of public trust in the legal and security authorities to properly handle suspected criminals,” says Advocate Akbar Ansari says. Ansari has been agitating for Seraiki rights, democracy and he is based in Ahmedpur East, a town close to Channi Goth where the crime had occurred.

Departmental reports had indicated that local police delayed judicial proceedings. Former IGP Mushtaq Sukhera had then taken a serious note of the delay in submission of challans by the police in the court for judicial proceedings. He ordered the suspension of Channi Goth SHO Inspector Irshad Hussein Bokhari for committing negligence in timely submission of challans.

The writer is bureau chief of The News in Multan. He can be reached at trisign69@yahoo.com