Emeute à Muridke au Pakistan août 2009

Factory owner, worker killed in Muridke ‘desecration’ riot

Wednesday, August 05, 2009

MURIDKE/LAHORE: A factory owner and a labourer were killed and dozens of workers injured in a leather factory on the Muridke-Sheikhupura road near Kathiala village after a factory official allegedly incited labourers by accusing the owner of desecration of the Quranic verses.

The riots broke out at 3am, when the factory workers were incited by a factory official to demonstrate against the desecration allegedly committed by Mian Najeeb Zafar, owner of Eastern Leather Factory. As a result, the labourers blocked the Muridke-Sheikhupura road, damage the factory and are reported to have resorted to firing. The deceased were identified as Mian Najeeb Zafar and a labourer Muzammal. All the injured persons were shifted to the THQ Hospital, most of them stated to be in a precarious condition.

DPO Sheikhupura Rai Tahir and SHO Muridke Sadar police station reached the spot and calmed down the labourers and manage to reopen the road after three hours.

DPO Rai Tahir confirmed the death of two persons including the factory owner and a protester. The DPO claimed that a factory official, Qasim, had provoked the workers against the factory owner over the alleged desecration of the Holy Qura’an to further his personal interest.

He explained that the factory workers confirmed that the owner had only disposed of a calendar, which had no Quranic verses, to paste a new one published for the month of Ramazan. Rai said the accused man called the Imam of the factory mosque and made announcements about sacrilege of the Holy Qura’an which led to the clash and protests.

Asked about the arrest of the accused, Rai Tahir said the protestors had fled the area. However, raids were being conducted to arrest them. The DPO said the case would be registered only after consulting legal experts.

Two dead over Quran desecration

August 05, 2009

FEROZEWALA – Two people were killed while four others sustained bullet injuries over alleged desecration of Holy Quran at a leather factory located near Muridke on Tuesday.
Factory owner Najeeb Zafar was changing calendar inscribed with verses of Holy Quran at his office when factory supervisor Qasim reached there. They exchanged hot words over the issue.
Later, the supervisor called factory labourers and locals and alleged that Najeeb had desecrated Holy Quran. On that, factory workers protested while locals encircled the factory and blocked Sheikhupura-Muridke Road and pelted stones on vehicles.
Infuriated factory workers clashed with security guards of Najeeb and snatched their weapons and started firing. As a result, a labourer Babar was killed on the spot while factory owner Najeeb and others suffered serious injuries.
They were rushed to hospital where Najeeb succumbed to his injuries. The angry labourers set the factory on fire. Police reached the spot and controlled the situation. Muridke Sadar Police have started further investigation.
Monitoring Desk adds: Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif has ordered the local authorities to file a report into the incident as soon as possible.

Mob kills two in Sheikhupura for desecrating Quran

By Rana Sarwar/Muhammad Faisal Ali
Wednesday, 05 Aug, 2009

SHEIKHUPURA: Two people were killed when a mob of hundreds of people, including factory workers, attacked a leather processing unit near Muridke on Tuesday over alleged desecration of Quranic verses. Leather unit owner Sheikh Najeeb Zafar is among the dead.

Police however, suspected that desecration issue had been used to instigate workers of East Leather Factory, Khatiala Virkan, and people living in nearby villages to settle some personal score.

Police said there had been a simmering dispute between the management and workers over the wages issue. At least 24 assailants were apprehended in a late-night development.

Sheikhupura DPO Rai Tahir said Qasim Mughal, a representative of workers, held a meeting with Najeeb Zafar on wages. He said Zafar was rolling a calendar carrying Quranic verses at that time.

The DPO said Mughal accused Zafar of desecrating the verses. Later, Mughal conveyed his accusations to fellow workers and nearby villagers through his cell phone.

They said that Shabbir, a village prayer leader, played a major role in instigating the villagers through the loudspeaker. He announced that Zafar tore apart the holy book and threw its pages in a nearby drain.

Police said the workers held a demonstration inside the factory, while the villagers blocked Sheikhupura Road.

When the protesting workers stormed Zafar’s office, security guards confronted them and reportedly opened fire. Some workers snatched the gun from a security guard and returned the fire.

The crossfire left Zafar and labourer Muzammil Shah dead. The protesters later ransacked the factory and set fire to it. Police reached the scene and dispersed the protesters.

Dawn learnt that Zafar had a quarrel with some people over a business issue two weeks ago. There were reports that he had been facing business-related disputes with his family business partners.

Zafar’s body was brought to Mayo Hospital’s city morgue for a post-mortem examination at around 10:40pm. A source at the morgue told Dawn that two shots had been fired at Zafar that caused his death.

Informations

Muridke is a major commercial city near the city of Lahore, Pakistan, it is located at 31°45’35N 73°50’16E and has an elevation of 205m (675ft)^[1] and is situated on the famous Grand Trunk Road and at the crossroads to Sheikhupura, Gujranwala and Narang Mandi/ Narowal. The economic and social life of the city, which has three police stations and a rail station, mainly depends on Lahore.