Police say foreign hand behind Jaranwala incident

IG claims the arrested suspects have links to hostile agency

LAHORE:

Police found evidence of a foreign conspiracy behind the recent Jaranwala incident and the Sargodha blasphemy case, hatched to divert attention away from the ill-treatment of the Christians community in India, Punjab Inspector General (IG) Dr Usman Anwar said on Monday.

Addressing a press conference at his office, Dr Anwar said that it transpired during the investigation that the two accused arrested over the Sargodha blasphemy case had links to the hostile agency, which hatched the plot to divert the attention from their country towards Pakistan.

Flanked by senior police officials of the Faisalabad police Range, including Regional Police Officer (RPO) of Faisalabad Range Dr Abid Khan, City Police chief Usman Akram Gondal and Sargodha range police chief Shariq Kamal Siddique, the IG said that suspects behind these incidents had been traced.

“The hostile agencies hatched a well thought-out and coordinated conspiracy to divert the attention from their country towards Pakistan,” he said. “The police during their investigations found that both suspects arrested in Sargodha blasphemy case have links to the hostile agencies,” he added.

“The police found the evidence after their arrest through their mobile phones. The Sargodha RPO, Shariq Kamal Siddique, himself investigated the suspects and traced their contacts with hostile agencies,” the Punjab police chief told reporters.

He said that police had arrested 180 suspects involved in Jaranwala incident, including three prime characters. “We have busted the anti-country network. Inshallah, such incidents will not occur in the future,” Anwar added.

Violent mobs attacked churches and homes of Christian residents in Jaranwala town in Faisalabad district after a Christian man was accused of blasphemy earlier this month. Multiple churches were set on fire, which triggered strong condemnation from the country’s political and religious parties.

At the presser, the Punjab police chief waved the copy of a news item regarding mistreatment of Christian women in the Indian state of Manipur. He also shared with the media a news report about the European Union resolution against injustices, violent against Muslim and other minorities in India.

Dr Anwar said that the suspects after committing the horrible offence of blasphemy had challenged the community to avenge it. He added that the police officials engaged with the local community as well religious scholars to maintain peace.

Read also: Jaranwala: pressure for compromise alleged

Police made hectic efforts to trace the suspects. “Police collected videos of the people. Around 2,500 policemen were deployed in civvies to identify the accused persons,” Dr Anwar said. “Police used geo fencing, CCTV monitoring, human intelligence, artificial intelligence, and other techniques.”

The IG stressed that this one act of an individual did not mean the involvement of the whole community in the act, he added. “Muslims in Jaranwala, in fact, offered their houses for the protection to community members.”

He announced that not only the government helped the victims financially but had also started the rehabilitation work. He urged the people to be aware of the enemy’s conspiracy. “It is our responsibility not to react and play into the hands of the enemy.

Stating that further investigation into the foreign hand in the incident continued, Anwar expressed his resolve that the suspects involved in both Sargodha and Jaranwala incidents would be prosecuted and duly punished.

Petition

Lahore High Court (LHC) directed a Christian community representative to approach the appropriate forum on the plea for institution of a “judicial inquiry committee” for instigation into Jaranwala incident earlier this month.

LHC Justice Shahid Bilal Hassan heard the petition, filed by Peter Charles, Chairman of the Grace Bible Fellowship Church. The Registrar Office had raised objection to the petition that the relevant forum had not been approached. However, the petition was heard objection.

Shahbaz Fazal Saroya Advocate, the counsel for the petitioner, argued that more than 500 accused invaded the properties of the Christian community in Jaranwala on August 16, but the police had arrested only 25 to 30 accused, so far.

Besides, the lawyer continued, the police officials were under undue pressure from some “extremist elements” who were forcing the members of Christian community to compromise with the accused extremists.

Justice Hassan directed the petitioner to first approach the concerned forum on the plea for “judicial inquiry committee” and intimate the court about the police pressure for a compromise with the attackers, as well as continuing threats to their lives from extremists.