Vigil attack: Five awarded prison terms

LAHORE:

An anti-terrorism court (ATC) on Monday convicted five people of attacking a candlelight vigil being held to mark the death anniversary of former Punjab governor Salmaan Taseer. They were awarded prison terms ranging from three to five years.

Judge Haroon Latif awarded five-year prison terms to Adeel, Farhan and Kashif. Three-year terms were awarded to Wazir Ali and Iftikhar. The court acquitted two suspects, Din Muhammad and Sajid, giving them the benefit of the doubt. The defence counsel said the accused were not involved in the attack. “They have been implicated in a false case,” he said.

On January 4, 2015, several people had attacked the participants of a vigil being held at Liberty Chowk to mark the death anniversary of Taseer. They had torn placards and beaten up the participants.

Taseer had been shot dead by his police guard, Mumtaz Qadri, in December 2011.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 28^th, 2015.