Pakistan
Pakistan: Christian man awarded death sentence for sparking riots in Jaranwala
A Pakistani court has awarded a death sentence to a Christian youth for allegedly circulating a social media post that led to riots in Jaranwala in August last year.
Sahiwal ATC Special Judge Ziaullah Khan announced the verdict, also sentencing the young man to 22 years in prison and imposing a fine of Rs1 million, reported Dawn News.
A large number of Christian houses and churches were vandalized by mobs in Jaranwala amid allegations that copy of the Holy Quran was desecrated.
Punjab police then said around 135 miscreants were booked for the attacks.
But according to Advocate Akmal Bhatti, chairman of the Minorities Alliance, most of the accused had either been discharged or freed on bail, reported Dawn News.
He said hardly 12 people are currently facing trials.
Complainant Amir Farooq, who is now serving as SHO at the Ghala Mandi police, told Dawn that while the man in question did not produce the blasphemous content, he did share it on TikTok, where it went viral.
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