Skeptic News: Blasphemy lynching

On Wednesday, July 4, residents in the town of Channigoth in Bahawalpur, Punjab province accused a homeless man of burning a Quran, an offense punishable by life imprisonment. Local police detained the man, whose identity remains unknown, but before they could investigate the claim, a group numbering more than a thousand gathered outside the station demanding that police kill the suspect.

Police attempts to calm the crowd faile and they entered the station, dragged the man out and then killed him.

Amnesty international has stated:

The Pakistan blasphemy laws’ vague formulation, along with inadequate investigation by authorities and intimidation by militant religious groups, has promoted vigilantism in Pakistan, especially in the Punjab. Religious minorities have been disproportionately accused of blasphemy, but a large proportion of victims are from the Muslim majority.

Amnesty are calling for urgent reform of Pakistans blasphemy laws.