May 25, 2024
By Xari Jalil & Ahmed Saeed
LAHORE
In an attack reminiscent of last year’s Jaranwala incident, two Christian men were attacked by a mob in Mujahid Colony, a Christian locality in Sargodha, while a small scale factory was also set ablaze. At least five others were injured by the mob. Sargodha police claim to have arrested 15 people involved in the incident.
According to Father David John, a parish priest from the St Francis Xavier Church, the incident began early morning, sometime around six a.m. “Lazar Gill who was also known locally as Nazir Masih, a 60 year old man, was accused of burning pages from the Holy Quran. There have been videos circulating showing these burnt pages, however these are unclear and if true, there is no evidence that Lazar Gill was behind it.” After the accusation, there were announcements in the local mosques inciting people to collect. This was exactly what happened in the Jaranwala incident.”
According to sources, the fire was set in a shoe manufacturing factory which was located inside a residential house.
Videos circulating on social media showed the angry mob torching their house, and ransacking property. A group of people at the forefront of the mob were also seen to be chanting religious slogans.
In one of the videos, Lazar Gill is bleeding and badly wounded, and is seen to be on the verge of collapse, but the attackers continue to beat him. In another video Gill is seen lying, almost lifeless on the ground, while he is being kicked brutally.
“When the Rescue 1122 officers tried to take Gill to the hospital, their van was attacked by the mob and they pelted stones. There were conflicting reports that Gill had succumbed to his wounds, but Fr David John says he has found out that the man may in fact be alive.
“He is alive but in a critical condition and has been shifted to the Civil-Military Hospital, Sargodha,” says Tariq Mehmood Ghauri, another activist of the Christian community.
Ghauri says that the violence in Sargodha was not new and in fact had been brewing since some time now.
“Even before the Jaranwala incident took place, there had been six or seven incidents of blasphemy accusations in Sargodha,” he told Voicepk. “FIRs were lodged and then the HRCP team also sent a fact finding mission here. After the intervention of human rights organizations, things cooled down. But as we can see it started again.”
He says ‘they’ are still mobilizing people and accuses TLP of involvement.
But Father David John says it is too soon to make assumptions without evidence.
Members of the Christian community fear further violence if the police fails to take concrete measures.
“There are at least 1000 families living in the entire area of Gillwala, under which Mujahid Colony falls,” says the priest. “In this colony Christians are living even more closely together – around 200 families across a couple of lanes. Most of the people have now left their homes and padlocked their doors in fear. They have moved away to relatives’ houses and there is intense fear here of yet another attack.”
The police too has sealed the area.
“Sadly whenever there is a situation such as this, everyone suddenly gets attentive,” says Fr. David. “Otherwise all year round we forget. This is a heavily populated Christian area and is prone to such incidents. I believe the government and human rights bodies should work together actively to create an environment where people’s resentments and misunderstandings are put to an end.”
Meanwhile the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan has condemned the violence, expressing serious concern over the unfolding situation in Sargodha.
“The Punjab police and district administration must immediately restore calm and bring the perpetrators to book while ensuring that the Christian community comes to no further harm,” said the organization in a press statement.
At the same time, Commissioner Sargodha Division Mohammad Ajmal Bhatti strongly condemned the desecration of the Holy Quran.
“A transparent investigation into the tragedy will be conducted and the people involved will be punished according to the law,” he said in an official statement. “There was no loss of life or property during the protest by the mob, and one person was injured who is now in stable condition and will soon be discharged from the hospital.”
The Commissioner went on to say that all the Christians were properly rescued and shifted to a safe place by the police and administrative agencies. “The Amn Committee has strongly condemned the tragedy, and the situation in the area is under complete control,” he said. He also asked citizens not to believe anything on social media.