
An enraged mob accosted a woman in Ichhra Lahore for wearing a shirt which had Arabic words inscribed on it, presuming it to be holy verses. The charged mob was straining on the leash to harm the woman. Before the religious zealots could harm her, police reached the spot and rescued the lady and her husband. The police team led by Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Syeda Shehrbano Naqvi, the sub-divisional police officer at Gulberg Lahore, handled the matter deftly and courageously and whisked away the lady from the spot.
It was later revealed that no Quranic verses were written on the shirt of the lady and just a design of word ‘Halwa’ was written in Arabic calligraphy. The ugly part was that the woman was made to apologise in the police station before a few maulvis. She had to change her clothes, don a dupatta, and express repentance over her alleged blasphemous act. She said she had not intended to cause any offense. Following an investigation that clarified the misunderstanding, confirming the design on the dress did not include sacred text, she was allowed to go free.
Once she was taken to the safety of the police station, police investigators could have at least asked the maulvis to read the so-called holy verses imprinted on her shirt. When it was confirmed that no sacred text was written the woman should not have been made to apologize. In fact, the aggressor extremist mob should have been booked for harassing and harming a woman.
This incident is a litmus test of increasing religious extremism in the country. In 2009, when terrorism was on the rise, some bearded vigilantes started harassing the women on streets for not wearing dupattas. In Karachi, when terrorism was at the pinnacle, the increase in the number of car snatching indicated subsequent rise in the terrorist activities. There are always signs and indicators prior to actual happenings. This act of blatant extremism should not be ignored.
The footage of the entire incident is available on social media. The wrongdoers can be identified and should be booked under relevant laws. More importantly, they should be made to apologise from the hapless woman for harassing and browbeating her in the public place. To arrest the propensity of rising religious extremism, it is imperative to send a strong message to all such fanatics that law would not spare them. If we want peace, rule of law and security for the people, government ought to condemn, control and erase the mob mentality and rule.
The semi-illiterate molvatas should be sought out alongwith the leaders of the urchins who gathered over there & severe punishment be publicly executed at the spot where this incident took place, so that in future such elements do not repeat such cases