Twenty men have been named in the FIR for the killing of 23-year-old Mashal Khan, a journalism student at the Abdul Wali Khan University in Mardan who was beaten to death by a mob that thought he had committed blasphemy. The police had arrested 16 of them (by the time we went to press) and eleven others have been identified through videos. Condemnations for the lynching, whose reality was driven home by its cell phone video that went viral, have poured in from across the country. Pressure mounted on the authorities to take action and bring the culprits to justice. The inspector-general of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa submitted on Tuesday a detailed report on the killing to the Supreme Court. But as the case unfolds in daily developments since the incident on April 13, perhaps one man is full of regret that will only compound with time. A student named Wajahatullah has confessed before a judicial magistrate that Mashal would have been alive today had he not said he had committed blasphemy.
These revelations were made in a confessional statement before the court of Mardan Judicial Magistrate-1 Mohibur Rehman on Monday night when Wajahat Ullah recorded his statement. According to him, Mashal had anti-Islamic views and two friends of his, Abdullah and Zubair, agreed with him. A class representative, Mudassar Bashir, had called him to meet him at the department chairman’s office where a discussion was underway about Mashal. Present were university staff, including lecturer Zia Ullah Hamdard, Pir Asfandiar, Anees Amin, Arshad, Saeed and Idrees. Faheem Alam was also present to authenticate his version.
“They didn’t have the mandate to convene such a meeting,” Wajahat told the judicial magistrate. “They were supposed to have informed the police. My role in the whole episode is that I gave a statement about the involvement of Mashal in blasphemy over which I am repentant.”
At this meeting, Assistant Professor Idrees is reported to have said that they did not need “communists” on campus. However, teacher Hamdard is reported to have that said a committee should investigate the matter. Security in-charge Bilal Baksh suddenly interrupted to say angrily that they would not spare Mashal and those who supported him. He “straight away warned us that anyone taking Mashal and his comrades’ side would be dealt with an iron hand and that he would kill Mashal,” said Wajahat in his statement. At one point after this, a crowd rushed towards the hostel in search of Mashal. Wajahat regrets what he did as Mashal would have been alive had he not said what he did.
The Mardan police report that four university officials will be included in the investigation. Zia Ullah Hamdard has resigned as a lecturer with the Mass Communications department. Hamdard spoke of the events of that day on a live TV programme. He said that teaching assistant Anees Amin had called him to say that there were some boys talking about Mashal and Abdullah, saying that they would kill them. He went to the spot and saw 15 to 20 people standing outside the clerk’s office. He asked the leaders of the group to come inside the chairman’s office where he asked what was going on. The boys told them that they believed Mashal and Abdullah had committed blasphemy on social media. Hamdard asked for proof. Mashal had just messaged him about this and warned that the charges were false. Hamdard was informed that Mashal had left the hostel and gone to his village, which is why he was not worried anything would happen to him. He was instead worried about Abdullah. He had no idea what would happen next.
Eyewitnesses said the mob of a few hundred students reached the hostel after ransacking the Journalism department. They broke three doors before they could drag Mashal out of his room and lynch him. Mashal was shot in the head and chest, stripped and his body was dragged outside the hostel to the road where it was desecrated. A witness has said that an estimated 250 to 300 people had gathered to watch him die. Some of them joined the attackers and hit his head one by one. A few of them chanted ‘Allahu Akbar’. A sub-inspector, who was present, confessed that he had failed to save Mashal. “I had a weapon but preferred not to fire it. If I did they would have lynched me too.” The witness said that the mob wanted to burn the body but DSP Mardan Haider Khan tactfully handled the situation and was able to save it and take it to hospital. The police force, under the supervision of District Police Officer Mian Saeed, started shelling to disperse the crowd. A large number of students witnessed the murder and made cell phone videos.
One of Mashal’s friends who was accused of blasphemy as well but escaped the violence albeit injured is Abdullah. His statement has been recorded, denying the allegations and maintaining the victim’s innocence. According to him, one of his friends, Muhammad Abbas, called him to come to the Department of Journalism that day. When he arrived, he saw Mudassir Bashir. He was accused of blasphemy and asked to prove himself as a Muslim. They tried to force him to testify that Mashal Khan has committed blasphemy. “But I refused,” said Abdullah in his statement. As the debate raged, he was shut in the bathroom of the department’s chairman’s office by the teachers who ostensibly tried to protect him. The teachers tried to resolve the problem, according to one version of events. Abdullah then realised that a mob was breaking doors and windows. He was dragged out and beaten too. It took the police some time to rescue him and take him to Mardan Medical Complex. It was there that he learnt of the killing.
According to Abdullah, a few weeks earlier, Mashal Khan had criticized the university administration and had questioned what he felt was an abuse of authority. This earned him quite a few enemies. Mashal had also boycotted the exams earlier on, to protest the university’s decision to prevent students who could not pay their fees from sitting the papers. A few days before the killing, Mashal had discussed how unhappy he was with what he said was the incompetency of the university administration. He wanted to know why no vice chancellor had been appointed after March 20 given that this delay was holding up a large number of degrees from being issued. He had discussed this at a peaceful protest by students. He was also against professors and staff holding multiple positions. A month ago, vice chancellor Dr. Ihsan Ali had retired but even though three eligible replacements were nominated, the provincial government had yet to pick a new VC.
During an interview that went viral on social media after his killing, Mashal is seen lamenting how high the tuition fees were at the university. It was charging Rs25,000, he said. Other places had set it at Rs7,000. “How will an underprivileged person get an education?”
“No one ever filed any complaint against Mashal. We had no clue about what happened that tragic day,” said Prof. Fayyaz Ali Shah, provost of the university. He maintains that whatever happened “happened at the spur of the moment.” He holds up a bandaged hand, claiming he was also beaten when he tried to save Abdullah at the journalism department. “After the mob left the journalism department we thought the matter was over. We did not have a slightest idea that they would go find Mashal,” he asserted.
What sealed Mashal’s death warrant was a circular that was officially posted online. It said mentioned by name Mashal Khan and the two other students, saying that they had been rusticated over blasphemy in the department. It is only later that the administration has said it was a “clerical error”. A day after the murder, the provost withdrew the previous notification, and issued a new copy that read that the ‘late’ Mashal Khan and his two friends were ‘alleged’ to have committed the offense.
“I believe they [the university administration] encouraged the radical students to teach him a lesson,” said one friend. “I cannot say the murder was premeditated, but they really wanted to straighten him out.”
The FIR was registered under sections 302, 148, 149, 297, 427 of the Pakistan Penal Code along with section-7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act at the police station of Sheikh Maltoon in Mardan against 20 suspects that include students, six university employees and a tehsil councilor identified as Arif.
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Pervez Khattak ordered a judicial inquiry on Friday. Police chief Salahuddin Mehsud held a press conference on Monday afternoon. “There is nothing concrete to suggest that Mashal, Abdullah, or Zubair had committed blasphemy, according to our preliminary investigation,” Mehsud stated.
Someone created a fake Facebook account in Mashal’s name and started posting controversial messages. Several days before his murder, Mashal had clarified on social media that some unknown people do this. He warned that his life and the life of his friends might be in danger. The FIA is investigating this and the police chief said they were aware of photoshopped or doctored material on social media in Mashal’s name that even surfaced after his death.
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s Imran Khan visited Mashal’s family on Tuesday when his father requested that the university be named after his son. Imran Khan assured them of the strongest punishment for the culprits. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif also directed the law enforcers to arrest the culprits.
Social workers, activists and residents of Swabi held a peaceful protest rally on the third day (soyem) of Mashal’s killing in Zaida town. They chanted, “Begunah, Begunah, Mashal Khan Begunah” (Mashal Khan is innocent). Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai issued a video message condemning the killing, saying that it brought a bad name to Islam. Chief Justice of Pakistan Saqib Nisar has ordered the KP police chief to submit a report.
Abdul Wali Khan University Mardan is the second highest ranking university in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa after the University of Peshawar. The university has been shut indefinitely. The administration of Abdul Wali Khan University Mardan has suspended seven employees. A notification was issued with their names; superintendent Afsar Khan, storekeeper Sajjad Ali, senior clerk Hanif Ahmed, office assistant Ajmal, office assistants Anas Ali and Ali Khan and attendant Nawab Ali. The National Assembly has passed a resolution to condemn the murder and demand the federal and provincial governments find the culprits and punish them.
With additional reporting by Shehzad Raza from Swabi.
These revelations were made in a confessional statement before the court of Mardan Judicial Magistrate-1 Mohibur Rehman on Monday night when Wajahat Ullah recorded his statement. According to him, Mashal had anti-Islamic views and two friends of his, Abdullah and Zubair, agreed with him. A class representative, Mudassar Bashir, had called him to meet him at the department chairman’s office where a discussion was underway about Mashal. Present were university staff, including lecturer Zia Ullah Hamdard, Pir Asfandiar, Anees Amin, Arshad, Saeed and Idrees. Faheem Alam was also present to authenticate his version.
“They didn’t have the mandate to convene such a meeting,” Wajahat told the judicial magistrate. “They were supposed to have informed the police. My role in the whole episode is that I gave a statement about the involvement of Mashal in blasphemy over which I am repentant.”
"They didn't have the mandate to convene such a meeting," Wajahat told the judicial magistrate. "They were supposed to have informed the police. My role in the whole episode is that I gave a statement about the involvement of Mashal in blasphemy over which I am repentant"
At this meeting, Assistant Professor Idrees is reported to have said that they did not need “communists” on campus. However, teacher Hamdard is reported to have that said a committee should investigate the matter. Security in-charge Bilal Baksh suddenly interrupted to say angrily that they would not spare Mashal and those who supported him. He “straight away warned us that anyone taking Mashal and his comrades’ side would be dealt with an iron hand and that he would kill Mashal,” said Wajahat in his statement. At one point after this, a crowd rushed towards the hostel in search of Mashal. Wajahat regrets what he did as Mashal would have been alive had he not said what he did.
The Mardan police report that four university officials will be included in the investigation. Zia Ullah Hamdard has resigned as a lecturer with the Mass Communications department. Hamdard spoke of the events of that day on a live TV programme. He said that teaching assistant Anees Amin had called him to say that there were some boys talking about Mashal and Abdullah, saying that they would kill them. He went to the spot and saw 15 to 20 people standing outside the clerk’s office. He asked the leaders of the group to come inside the chairman’s office where he asked what was going on. The boys told them that they believed Mashal and Abdullah had committed blasphemy on social media. Hamdard asked for proof. Mashal had just messaged him about this and warned that the charges were false. Hamdard was informed that Mashal had left the hostel and gone to his village, which is why he was not worried anything would happen to him. He was instead worried about Abdullah. He had no idea what would happen next.
Eyewitnesses said the mob of a few hundred students reached the hostel after ransacking the Journalism department. They broke three doors before they could drag Mashal out of his room and lynch him. Mashal was shot in the head and chest, stripped and his body was dragged outside the hostel to the road where it was desecrated. A witness has said that an estimated 250 to 300 people had gathered to watch him die. Some of them joined the attackers and hit his head one by one. A few of them chanted ‘Allahu Akbar’. A sub-inspector, who was present, confessed that he had failed to save Mashal. “I had a weapon but preferred not to fire it. If I did they would have lynched me too.” The witness said that the mob wanted to burn the body but DSP Mardan Haider Khan tactfully handled the situation and was able to save it and take it to hospital. The police force, under the supervision of District Police Officer Mian Saeed, started shelling to disperse the crowd. A large number of students witnessed the murder and made cell phone videos.
One of Mashal’s friends who was accused of blasphemy as well but escaped the violence albeit injured is Abdullah. His statement has been recorded, denying the allegations and maintaining the victim’s innocence. According to him, one of his friends, Muhammad Abbas, called him to come to the Department of Journalism that day. When he arrived, he saw Mudassir Bashir. He was accused of blasphemy and asked to prove himself as a Muslim. They tried to force him to testify that Mashal Khan has committed blasphemy. “But I refused,” said Abdullah in his statement. As the debate raged, he was shut in the bathroom of the department’s chairman’s office by the teachers who ostensibly tried to protect him. The teachers tried to resolve the problem, according to one version of events. Abdullah then realised that a mob was breaking doors and windows. He was dragged out and beaten too. It took the police some time to rescue him and take him to Mardan Medical Complex. It was there that he learnt of the killing.
According to Abdullah, a few weeks earlier, Mashal Khan had criticized the university administration and had questioned what he felt was an abuse of authority. This earned him quite a few enemies. Mashal had also boycotted the exams earlier on, to protest the university’s decision to prevent students who could not pay their fees from sitting the papers. A few days before the killing, Mashal had discussed how unhappy he was with what he said was the incompetency of the university administration. He wanted to know why no vice chancellor had been appointed after March 20 given that this delay was holding up a large number of degrees from being issued. He had discussed this at a peaceful protest by students. He was also against professors and staff holding multiple positions. A month ago, vice chancellor Dr. Ihsan Ali had retired but even though three eligible replacements were nominated, the provincial government had yet to pick a new VC.
During an interview that went viral on social media after his killing, Mashal is seen lamenting how high the tuition fees were at the university. It was charging Rs25,000, he said. Other places had set it at Rs7,000. “How will an underprivileged person get an education?”
“No one ever filed any complaint against Mashal. We had no clue about what happened that tragic day,” said Prof. Fayyaz Ali Shah, provost of the university. He maintains that whatever happened “happened at the spur of the moment.” He holds up a bandaged hand, claiming he was also beaten when he tried to save Abdullah at the journalism department. “After the mob left the journalism department we thought the matter was over. We did not have a slightest idea that they would go find Mashal,” he asserted.
What sealed Mashal’s death warrant was a circular that was officially posted online. It said mentioned by name Mashal Khan and the two other students, saying that they had been rusticated over blasphemy in the department. It is only later that the administration has said it was a “clerical error”. A day after the murder, the provost withdrew the previous notification, and issued a new copy that read that the ‘late’ Mashal Khan and his two friends were ‘alleged’ to have committed the offense.
“I believe they [the university administration] encouraged the radical students to teach him a lesson,” said one friend. “I cannot say the murder was premeditated, but they really wanted to straighten him out.”
The FIR was registered under sections 302, 148, 149, 297, 427 of the Pakistan Penal Code along with section-7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act at the police station of Sheikh Maltoon in Mardan against 20 suspects that include students, six university employees and a tehsil councilor identified as Arif.
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Pervez Khattak ordered a judicial inquiry on Friday. Police chief Salahuddin Mehsud held a press conference on Monday afternoon. “There is nothing concrete to suggest that Mashal, Abdullah, or Zubair had committed blasphemy, according to our preliminary investigation,” Mehsud stated.
Someone created a fake Facebook account in Mashal’s name and started posting controversial messages. Several days before his murder, Mashal had clarified on social media that some unknown people do this. He warned that his life and the life of his friends might be in danger. The FIA is investigating this and the police chief said they were aware of photoshopped or doctored material on social media in Mashal’s name that even surfaced after his death.
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s Imran Khan visited Mashal’s family on Tuesday when his father requested that the university be named after his son. Imran Khan assured them of the strongest punishment for the culprits. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif also directed the law enforcers to arrest the culprits.
Social workers, activists and residents of Swabi held a peaceful protest rally on the third day (soyem) of Mashal’s killing in Zaida town. They chanted, “Begunah, Begunah, Mashal Khan Begunah” (Mashal Khan is innocent). Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai issued a video message condemning the killing, saying that it brought a bad name to Islam. Chief Justice of Pakistan Saqib Nisar has ordered the KP police chief to submit a report.
Abdul Wali Khan University Mardan is the second highest ranking university in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa after the University of Peshawar. The university has been shut indefinitely. The administration of Abdul Wali Khan University Mardan has suspended seven employees. A notification was issued with their names; superintendent Afsar Khan, storekeeper Sajjad Ali, senior clerk Hanif Ahmed, office assistant Ajmal, office assistants Anas Ali and Ali Khan and attendant Nawab Ali. The National Assembly has passed a resolution to condemn the murder and demand the federal and provincial governments find the culprits and punish them.
With additional reporting by Shehzad Raza from Swabi.