Mosque caretaker in Kasur held over blasphemy charges

Suspect has denied allegations that he burnt pages of Holy Quran

LAHORE: Kanganpura Police on Sunday took the caretaker of a local mosque into custody over alleged charges of blasphemy.

Villagers staged a demonstration outside the Kanganpur police station following the arrest. They besieged the building and demanded police hand over the suspect to them after he reportedly burnt pages of the Holy Quran.

According to a police official, there are two madrassas in the area following the Ahle Sunnat and Deobandi doctrine of Islam.



“We are investigating the matter and holding meetings with elders and religious scholars of the area in a bid to find out what happened,” the official added.

The suspect, however, has denied the allegations. Police said they were investigating the matter further and would proceed as per the law. According to initial investigations, the caretaker did not commit blasphemy.

In September last year, a man with disabilities was arrested by police on blasphemy allegations, just two days after a teenager was accused in a similar case. The administration of Markazi Mosque of the Ahle Sunnat sect had accused the suspect of desecrating some pages of Holy Quran.