Mashal Khan blasphemy lynching case: Pakistani court issues death sentence, 5 get life term

A Pakistani court on Wednesday sentenced one person to death and awarded life imprisonment to five others in the blasphemy lynching case of Mashal Khan. He was a student of Abdul Wali Khan University in Mardan and was killed by a mob in the premises of the university on April 13, 2017.

The verdict comes months after a mob comprising students stripped, brutally thrashed and then shot the 23-year-old student to death. The mob had also thrown him from the second floor of his dormitory.

The incident had shocked the entire nation after a video of the assault went viral on social media. Khan was subjected to brutal assault for posting "blasphemous content" on social media. Moreover, blasphemy is considered a serious crime in Pakistan and can often lead to a death penalty.

Reports had claimed that that the deceased had been protesting against a hike in fees and corruption at the university.

Besides being given a death sentence, Sultan Mohammad, who had earlier confessed to shooting Khan, has also been asked to pay a fine of 150,000 Pakistani rupees.

The court has given three-year sentences to 25 other accused and acquitted 26 people.

However, the court's judgement has not gone down well with the families of the accused men. 

"A day will come that the judge will answer the God. The verdict he has announced is unjust," Waheedullah, whose son was given a three-year sentence, was quoted as saying by AFP.

The relatives and supporters of the mob who had gathered outside the court on Wednesday had demanded that the those convicted should be acquitted.