Pakistan’s Supreme Court has criticised the inaction of police in response to the November 2014 burning alive of a Christian couple, Shahzad Masih and Shama Bibi, in Punjab state.
Five police officers were present Muslims descended upon the couple, who had been accused of desecrating a copy of the Quran. Shama Bibi was five months pregnant at the time.
The officers were accused of negligence, while an anti-terrorism court charged 106 people with murder.
However, justice “moves at a slow pace”, Christian lawyers told Fides.
Meanwhile, defence lawyers have criticised the judicial process, highlighting that two of the accused had their bail petitions rejected, while another two were granted bail – even though both registered the same claim: that they were just “passersby”.
One of the judges was accused of not knowing the “definition of passersby”, reports Dawn.
