{"id":2117,"date":"2023-09-09T06:16:04","date_gmt":"2023-09-09T06:16:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/sc-seeks-jit-report-on-jaranwala-incident-the-express-tribune\/"},"modified":"2023-09-09T06:16:04","modified_gmt":"2023-09-09T06:16:04","slug":"sc-seeks-jit-report-on-jaranwala-incident-the-express-tribune","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/sc-seeks-jit-report-on-jaranwala-incident-the-express-tribune\/","title":{"rendered":"SC seeks JIT report on Jaranwala incident | The Express Tribune"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\nISLAMABAD:
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The Supreme Court has sought a report from the joint investigation team (JIT) formed to probe into the vandalism of 80 Christian homes and 19 churches in Faisalabad district\u2019s Jaranwala last month.<\/p>\n

A three-judge bench led by Justice Ijazul Ahsan also issued notices to the religious affairs secretary, Auqaf chairman, attorney general for Pakistan and advocate general seeking their replies.<\/p>\n

The court remarked that the state should ensure the protection of the Sikh community and other religious minorities in accordance with the guarantees given to them in the Constitution.<\/p>\n

The petitioner, Sardar Bishan Singh, apprised the court that there was fear among the Sikh youth that they were being targeted for murder.<\/p>\n

He requested the court to order the Auqaf department to build four walls of the gurdwaras and protect them from encroachment groups.<\/p>\n

Singh continued that these groups did not differentiate between temples, mosques, gurdwaras or any other place of worship and encroached upon them whenever they wanted.<\/p>\n

During the hearing, the details of the destruction of gurdwaras in Lahore were also submitted to the SC by the Sikh leader.<\/p>\n

The court was told that after the Jaranwala tragedy, hate speeches were also being delivered.<\/p>\n

The SC was further informed that in the light of an agreement with a right-wing party, patrolling was being carried out in the settlements of minorities to check if anyone was resorting to blasphemy.<\/p>\n

The petitioner requested the SC to order the relevant authorities to produce this agreement in the court.<\/p>\n

To this, the SC ordered the interior secretary and the relevant police chiefs to submit a report on the matter to the court.<\/p>\n

The court also issued directions to the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa police chief to present a detailed report on the issue of targeted killings of the members of the Sikh community in the province.<\/p>\n

The SC issued notices to the religious affairs secretary and Auqaf chairman over the dilapidated state of Hindu temples.<\/p>\n

On Aug 16, 19 churches in Jaranwala were torched by a violent mob over blasphemy allegations.<\/p>\n

Terror and panic gripped the town for hours as the mob equipped with batons, push carts and patrol cans stormed a Christian neighbourhood, ransacking homes and vandalising places of worship while chanting slogans of a right-wing party.<\/p>\n

Reports that a copy of the Holy Quran had been desecrated were broadcast from mosques, with one cleric telling followers it was “better to die if you don’t care about Islam”.<\/p>\n

The mob attack was widely condemned by political and religious leaders of the country as well as by civil society and the army chief.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n