Month: February 2018

Life in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Mardan district came to a halt on Friday as thousands of workers and supporters of religious parties took to roads to pressure the government into releasing the 31 men convicted in the brutal murder of Abdul Wali Khan University Mardan student Mashal Khan, who was lynched in April 2017 after being falsely accused of blasphemy. Thousands of members of the Tahaffuz Khatm-i-Nabuwat Organisation, Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) and Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) joined by locals participated in the protest that began at Pakistan Chowk after Friday prayers. A view of the…

In the face of criticism from the Supreme Court and political spheres, Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan on Wednesday commended the “professional” performance of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa police referencing the headway made in the cases of Mashal Khan’s lynching and the murder of a minor girl in Mardan. Almost a week earlier, the chief justice had criticised KP police, saying: “We had heard that the KP police have become very efficient in the province, but [it seems] your incapability has made you dependent on others […] that is why so…

An Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) in Haripur is set to announce its verdict in the Mashal Khan lynching case on Wednesday amid tight security. ATC Jugde Fazal Khan Subhan is expected to announce a short verdict in the heavily guarded Haripur jail. Extra security arrangements have been made due to the sensitivity of the case, with roads leading to jail being closed. The jail administration has also banned the entry of visitors. “It is expected that a large number of relatives, friends, family members and supporters will gather outside the Haripur…

Deliberating on the Elections Act 2017, which paved the way for disqualified prime minister Nawaz Sharif to regain presidency of the PML-N, the Supreme Court on Tuesday asked a petitioner how having a party chief who is not eligible to contest elections would be in contradiction with the Constitution. Barrister Farogh Naseem, who is representing opposition MNA Sheikh Rashid, told the court that the law was passed only 17 days after Sharif’s disqualification by the Supreme Court in Panamagate case. Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar — heading the three-member bench hearing the case…