A female police officer, who praised a hero for protecting a woman from an angry mob, told Sky News that the case had made Pakistani society question itself.
Sayeeda Shahrbano, Assistant Superintendent, Lahore, She intervened to save the woman from a crowd of 200 menSome of them demanded her beheading.
The crowd mistook the print on the woman's dress for verses from the Qur'an, and clerics and scholars only later confirmed that it was an Arabic writing of the word “beautiful.”
Blasphemy in Pakistan is punishable by death, and there have been many cases of people being killed before they could stand trial.
Ms Shahrabano was caught telling the mob to “trust us” before covering the woman with a black robe and gold veil and pushing her through the crowd to lead her to safety.
She was honored for her bravery by the Inspector General of Police in Punjab province, who said she “put her life at risk” to help the woman.
Speaking to Sky News presenter Yalda Hakim on Monday, Ms Shahrabano said she hoped the incident would be the last of its kind, “at least in Pakistan”.
“The most important thing is that it made the community question itself because the four or five minutes I walked from the main road until I reached that area (where the woman was) was a busy market.
“It's a market full of people, it's a market full of customers in many stores, so people were going about their daily activities all the time knowing that there was a woman surrounded by about 200 people ready to be lynched.
“This is the question that will be asked about society’s awareness and behavior, how it has degenerated, and why it has degenerated to this extent.
“Now people are starting to wonder: If 200 people were willing to execute her, why wouldn't 600 be willing to protect her?”
The woman's clothes bore writings in Arabic, but the mob mistook them for verses from the Qur'an. Photo: Punjab Police
Ms. Shahrabano seemed uncomfortable with being described as a heroine, saying: “This is a very big question for me to answer… People around me will be better at judging this.”
“It could have escalated, yes; my life was in danger, yes, there's no doubt about that.
“The team that was on the ground, their lives were in danger, there's no doubt about that. But there are certain things you have to do in the line of duty, and sometimes you have to go beyond that duty.
“Our lives, when we are in a situation like this, become very secondary and not very important, because the life of the victim is at stake, and the image of the country is at stake.”
Asia Bibi, a Christian woman who was sentenced to death in Pakistan in 2010 after being accused of insulting the Prophet Muhammad, watched the video and told Sky News it reminded her of what happened to her.
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The officer received an award after rescuing a woman from a mob
it was He was acquitted in 2018 and subsequently fled the country.
Yalda Hakim said: “After I watched this scene, an incident of my own came to mind, which was the way I was arrested and lost my senses.
“Similarly, the same scenario was with that little girl.
“The dress she was wearing at the time had some Arabic words printed on it, but the mob thought they were Quranic verses.
“It is the fashion of Arabic-speaking people’s clothing, and we Pakistanis should check something first before taking any action.”
