JI takes out rally against Sialkot lynching

SIALKOT: Hundreds of people participated in a rally taken out by the Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) and Shabab-e-Mili in Sialkot as a protest against the lynching of two boys by locals in the presence of senior police officials.

Ameer Jamaat-e-Islami Syed Munawar Hassan led the rally which started from Hajipura-Sialkot and ended at Allama Iqbal Chowk after passing through all major roads in the city. The participants were holding banners and placards against the police and chanting slogans against the government.

Addressing the rally, Hassan strongly condemned the lynching incident. “The brutal assassination of two young brothers at the hands of a violent few, in the presence of the local law-enforcement agencies is cause for national embarrassment and shame,” he said.

Hassan said that the accused involved in the incident would be dealt with an iron fist. He said that the government should draft necessary legislation to halt such horrendous incidents from occurring in the future. The rally also protested outside two different police stations in the district.

Hassan said that the government needed to carry out an independent review of the workings of the Sialkot police department to ensure that the police officials responsible in the incident were not able to escape punishment.

“The police system is corrupt and thrives on violence and bloodshed. The attitude of the police needs to be changed if they are to protect the people,” he said.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 28^th, 2010.