A man accused of blasphemy was killed in an alleged police encounter in Mirpur Khas, Sindh, on Thursday. The deceased, identified as Dr. Shahnawaz, was a resident of Umarkot and had been accused of posting blasphemous content on social media, sparking violent protests by certain religious groups on Wednesday.
On Wednesday, a large number of enraged protesters gathered outside the local press club, demanding the immediate arrest of Dr. Shahnawaz. During the protest, demonstrators set a police mobile van on fire. The situation calmed only after the Umerkot Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) assured the protesters that an FIR would be filed against the suspect.
Following this assurance, police registered a case against Dr. Shahnawaz at the Taluka police station under Section 295-C of the Pakistan Penal Code.
Authorities then conducted a raid to arrest Dr. Shahnawaz, who was reportedly hiding with a friend who was armed. According to police, the accused opened fire to evade arrest, and during the exchange of gunfire, Dr. Shahnawaz was killed by a bullet fired by his friend.
This incident follows another occurrence on September 11, when Abdul Ali, a hotel owner accused of blasphemy, was shot and killed by a police constable while in custody in Quetta. This incident occurred a day after a mob attempted to lynch him over blasphemy accusations, prompting police to intervene and take him into custody. He was subsequently shot dead by the constable inside the lockup.