By: Naseebullah Khan
Not surprisingly, Priyantha Kumara was not the first, Mashal Khan, the Christian couple, who was thrown alive in a brick kiln and many more have been the victims of extrajudicial vigilantism here. It gesticulates the radicalization of our society, which was have been witnessing for decades. Zahid Hussein opines that Pakistan is the Victim of retrogressive interpretation of faith.
The question is that in the presence of blasphemy law and the constitution, does anybody have the right to lynch and kill anyone? Obviously no. Again. The question arises that why the incidents have been increasing?
When religious and political parties play a religious card, when you surrender to the protesters (as was in the case of TLP), when you mainstream extremists against the rivals for the sake of some votes without radicalizing them, these kinds of incidents will continue.
The onus of huge responsibility of such incidents has always been on the party in power. The visit of PTI senator to TLP office and wishing their collaboration in elections, and the escapism of defense minister Pervez Khatak from responsibility by issuing an irrelevant statement will further fuel the situation.
The damage has been done. The incident has further cemented the negative image of the state with respect to intolerance, lack of rule of law, minority rights, and rise of extremism. According to the board of investment, around five thousand competent foreign brains are working in the country. There is a dire need to preserve their confidence and assure them about their security.
In the long run, a robust struggle is the need of the hour. Religious leaders should come forward with the true teaching of Islam along with tolerance. The government has the responsibility to implement the writ of the government. Last but not least, building a national narrative, and consensus in stopping such incidents is urgently needed.
The writer is a freelance columnist. He tweets at @Naseebk95976870