The Pakistani prosecutor who allegedly offered to release Christians in the Youhanabad lynching trial if they converted to Islam has been found guilty of proselytising, reports Dawn.
Syed Anees Shah, the deputy district public prosecutor (DDPP), was suspended when the allegation came to light during a hearing in March 2017, although he denied the charge. David Nixon, whose son is on trial, told World Watch Monitor he heard the DDPP “offer to acquit all 42 suspects if they converted to Islam” when they were coming out of court.
Shah was criticised for his alleged comment by Malik Muhammmad Ahmed Khan, special assistant to the chief minister of Punjab, who said the offer “is not just shameful but a heinous crime … We are all set to end the extremist mindset and steer the country to a tolerant and moderate society. Therefore, we cannot tolerate anyone in the government machinery with this mindset”.
Forty-two Christians remain on trial for the murder of two Muslim bystanders caught up in a violent protest following two suicide attacks on two churches in Youhanabad, a majority-Christian area in the Punjabi city of Lahore, on 15 March 2015.