Pakistan Christian's death 'not due to natural causes' Skip to main content

Pakistan Christian's death 'not due to natural causes'

By Syed Shoaib Hasan BBC News, Karachi
Christians in Karachi Christians in Pakistan say they are being increasingly persecuted

Related Stories

A Christian convicted of blasphemy in Pakistan has died in mysterious circumstances in a jail in the southern city of Karachi.
Qamar David was serving a life sentence in Karachi's central jail for insulting the Koran and the Prophet Muhammad.
Officials say he died of a heart attack but his family say that as a fit and healthy man, this is unlikely be true.
Pakistan's penal code prescribes punishments up to death for blasphemy against Islam and the Prophet.
The law has elicited strong criticism - although recently liberals are more nervous about speaking out against it.
That appears to be especially the case since the murder of Minority Affairs Minister Shahbaz Bhatti - a Christian - earlier this month, an event preceded by the murder of another liberal, Punjab Governor Salman Taseer in January.
David was convicted of making blasphemous comments against the Koran and the Prophet in a text message to a business rival.
'Threats' "My client was in perfect condition the last time I met him," Qamar David's lawyer Pervez Chaudhry told the BBC.
Central jail in Karachi Officials say that David was being held in a Christians-only part of the jail
"I have spoken to the family and we don't believe he died a natural death.
"He had been receiving threats against his life.
"I had submitted an application in this regard in court - my client had also mentioned that prison officials were involved."
Mr Chaudhry's arguments have been backed up by the dead man's family.
"I visited him quite regularly and he had never complained of any illness," Shahid Sagar, David's cousin, told the BBC.
"He was certainly not in the kind of condition that would make him drop dead all of a sudden. I can't accept this report of him dying of a heart attack."
But prison officials are adamant that David died of natural causes.
"There is no question about it - he died of natural causes," Sindh Inspector General of Prisons Ghulam Qadir Thebo said.
Mr Thebo said that the dead man was lodged in a Christians-only wing - so there was no question of him being targeted by Muslim prisoners.
"Our investigations have not yielded any evidence of foul play," Mr Thebo said.
"There is no evidence to suggest he was murdered."
However he added that further inquiries could be conducted if demanded by the family.
Qamar David worked as a supplier of cosmetics to local shops in Karachi.
He was a resident of Lahore - where his family now lives - but was kept in jail in Karachi, which is part of Sindh province.
Mr Chaudhry said that David's wife is now on her way to Karachi and is expected to ask for a post mortem examination when she arrives on Wednesday.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-12749349
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Chronology of the Press in Burma

1836 – 1846 * During this period the first English-language newspaper was launched under British-ruled Tenasserim, southern  Burma . The first ethnic Karen-language and Burmese-language newspapers also appear in this period.     March 3, 1836 —The first English-language newspaper,  The Maulmain Chronicle , appears in the city of Moulmein in British-ruled Tenasserim. The paper, first published by a British official named E.A. Blundell, continued up until the 1950s. September 1842 —Tavoy’s  Hsa-tu-gaw  (the  Morning Star ), a monthly publication in the Karen-language of  Sgaw ,  is established by the Baptist mission. It is the first ethnic language newspaper. Circulation reached about three hundred until its publication ceased in 1849. January 1843 —The Baptist mission publishes a monthly newspaper, the Christian  Dhamma  Thadinsa  (the  Religious Herald ), in Moulmein. Supposedly the first Burmese-language newspaper, it continued up until the first year of the second Angl
Post a Comment
Read more

Thai penis whitening trend raises eyebrows

Image copyright LELUXHOSPITAL Image caption Authorities warn the procedure could be quite painful A supposed trend of penis whitening has captivated Thailand in recent days and left it asking if the country's beauty industry is taking things too far. Skin whitening is nothing new in many Asian countries, where darker skin is often associated with outdoor labour, therefore, being poorer. But even so, when a clip of a clinic's latest intriguing procedure was posted online, it quickly went viral. Thailand's health ministry has since issued a warning over the procedure. The BBC Thai service spoke to one patient who had undergone the treatment, who told them: "I wanted to feel more confident in my swimming briefs". The 30-year-old said his first session of several was two months ago, and he had since seen a definite change in the shade. 'What for?' The original Facebook post from the clinic offering the treatment, which uses lasers to break do
1 comment
Read more

Is 160 enough? One Indian man's family

By Sumnima Udas , CNN October 31, 2011 -- Updated 0857 GMT (1657 HKT) Ziona, center, with his has 39 wives, 86 children and 35 grandchildren in rural Baktwang village, India. STORY HIGHLIGHTS One man in India is the patriarch of a family of 160 in rural India Ziona, who only goes by his first name, has 39 wives, 86 children and 35 grandchildren. Ziona's father, Chana, founded the Christian sect in Baktwang that promotes polygamy "I never wanted to get married but that's the path God has chosen for me" Mizoram, India (CNN) -- The world's population hits 7 billion this week, but Ziona, the patriarch of what may be the biggest family in the world, is not bothered. "I don't care about overpopulation in India ... I believe God has chosen us to be like this (have big families). Those who are born into this family don't want to leave this tradition so we just keep growing and growing," he says with a smile. Ziona, who only goes by his f
Post a Comment
Read more