Sialkot incident disgraced Pakistan, Muslim Ummah, says Mufti Taqi Usmani

KARACHI: Noted Islamic scholar Mufti Taqi Usmani on Saturday condemned the incident in Sialkot in which a mob lynched a Sri Lankan factory manager, saying that it has “disgraced” Pakistan and the Muslim Ummah.

A day earlier, Diyawadanage Don Nandasri Priyantha, who had been working as a manager at a private factory on Wazirabad Road in Sialkot, was tortured to death and his body set on fire by a mob over allegations of religious sacrilege.

In a message on social media, the former judge of the Federal Shariat Court said that blasphemy is an extremely heinous crime but it requires equally strong evidence to prove it.

“Taking it upon oneself to lay accusation and mete out punishment in a barbaric and ‘haram’ way has no justification at all,” Mufti Taqi said.