Chitral distt govt, politicians demand fair trial in blasphemy case

CHITRAL: The district government representatives and local leaders of religious parties on Sunday demanded fair trial in the blasphemy case.

Speaking at a press conference, District Nazim Maghfirat Shah, his deputy Maulana Abdul Shakoor, Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) district chief Maulana Jamshed Ahmad, Maulana Hussain Ahmad of the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) and others criticised the local police for their role in the whole episode.

They urged Chief Justice of Peshawar High Court Yahya Afridi to take note of the misuse of authority by the police and for making arbitrary arrests and subjecting the detained protesters to severe torture.

They thanked the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government and concerned authorities for their cooperation that made possible the release of people arrested during the protest against an alleged blasphemer.

They said that the arrested people were freed due to the intervention and cooperation of Chief Minister Pervez Khattak and particularly of Inspector General of Police Salahuddin Khan.

They also appreciated the role and efforts of Senator Inayatullah Khan and former Member National Assembly Abdul Akbar Chitrali and also Maulana Ataur Rehman, opposition leader in the provincial assembly, for securing the release of the protesters.

Expressing reservations about the investigation into the case, they demanded the government to ensure fair trial in context of the charges against the alleged blasphemer so that the case could be taken to its logical end.