A
25-year-old Christian man was killed by a mob in Lahore, Pakistan, on Monday
14th February 2021 after police were too slow to react to reports of
violence.
At least 150
people, some of them brandishing weapons, set upon Pervez Masih, a married game
shop owner, in the Factory Area of the city.
The police
were called to the scene but failed to put a stop to the violence. Masih died
later in hospital from head wounds after being hit with bricks by the
mob.
His death
came a day after a scuffle broke out between local Muslims and Christians on
Sunday night, leaving one man injured.
The
Christian community fears the attack on Masih was carried out in revenge after
they reported the scuffle to the police.
Masih’s
family registered a First Information Report after his death and police
arrested one suspect.
It was
reported that police failed to register the FIR against the culprits on time
because some of them were influential Muslims.
Christian
lawyer Javaid Gill said the police must bear some responsibility for Masih’s
death because Christians already went to them after Sunday night’s violence
pleading for protection.
He said that
Masih’s death could have been prevented if the police had acted at that time.
Instead, officers didn’t take the requests for protection seriously and did not
attend the scene of Sunday night’s scuffle.
Masih’s
sisters said that some of those responsible for his death used to come to their
brother’s game shop and threaten him.
Samson
Salamat, the chairman of Rawadari Tehreek, a social movement promoting
religious tolerance, also held the police responsible for Masih’s death because
they were present at the scene when it happened and failed to protect him from
the mob.
He added
that if the Chief Minister of Punjab, the head of the Punjab Police and the
Human Rights Minister of Punjab cannot bring justice for Masih’s family, they
should step down.
“Today the
culprits gave a message to Christians of Pakistan that we are nothing. They can
kill us any time, even in the presence of police,” he said.