SC bench to hear Jaranwala vandalism case tomorrow

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court said on Monday it has formed a three-judge bench to hear a case related to the mob attacks on Christian churches and homes in Jaranwala last week.

The bench, headed by Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial and comprising Justice Athar Minallah and Justice Shahid Waheed, will take up the case on Tuesday, the court said in a statement.

The top court also issued notices to the federal and provincial governments, the police and other parties involved in the matter.

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The case stems from the violence that erupted in Jaranwala, about 115 km (71 miles) from Lahore, on August 16, after two Christian men were accused of blasphemy and desecrating the holy Quran.

According to the National Commission for Human Rights (NCHR), a Pakistani government body, at least 17 churches were vandalised by angry mobs that also torched and looted Christian homes in the area.

The Punjab government said it had arrested more than 100 people in connection with the incident and deployed paramilitary forces to maintain law and order.

Pakistan’s Christian community, which makes up about 1.6% of the country’s 220 million population, has long faced discrimination and persecution.

In 2013, more than 80 people were killed when two suicide bombers attacked a church in Peshawar city. In 2015, at least 15 people were killed when Taliban militants bombed two churches in Lahore.