Still No Justice 2 Years After Christian Couple Were Burnt Alive in Pakistan

Christian couple Shahzad Masih (right) and Shama Bibi (left) were killed by a Muslim mob for allegedly desecrating the Quran in Pakistan in November 2014. (British Pakistani Christian Association)

The Pakistan justice system has yet to punish any of the hundreds of Muslims who beat up and burned to death a Christian couple who were accused of blasphemy two years ago.

In a report from The Christian Post, Mehwish Bhatti, an officer of the London-based charity British Pakistani Christian Association (BPCA), said some of those allegedly involved in the killing of 26-year-old Shahzad Masih and his 24-year-old pregnant wife, Shama Bibi, were actually able to walk free from prison.

Bhatti said Yousaf Gujjar, the man who was the first to accuse the Christian couple of desecrating the Quran, was granted bail earlier this year.

Gujjar, a known employer of bonded labourers in the area, was allowed to walk free based on his alibi that he was not even at the brick kiln on the day the Christian couple were burnt alive.

Two other unnamed suspects were also allowed to post bail — one who claimed he was not a resident of the area where the Christian couple were allegedly murdered, and another who claimed that he was not part of the mob that killed the two Christians by burning them alive.

Bhatti nevertheless said justice may be at hand for the Christian couple's orphaned three children and their other relatives, because the Pakistani court may soon hand down decisions on the hundred others who were allegedly involved in the brutal killings.

"Still, 103 people are in police custody and soon any punishment will be announced," Bhatti told The Christian Post. "The 103 people in custody keep on appealing for bail but the family of Shama and Shahzad are trying hard to keep on making their bails canceled."

Aside from failing to secure justice from courts, the Christian couple's children has also yet to receive the 5 million rupees promised by the Pakistani government as assistance, prompting BPCA to take care of their needs for now.

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