In Umerkot, Sindh, a mob seized the body of Dr. Shah Nawaz Kumbhar, a blasphemy suspect reportedly killed in a police encounter, and set it on fire on Friday.

This incident followed the filing of a blasphemy case against him on September 17, with news of his death emerging on the night of September 18-19.

According to relatives, when Dr. Kumbhar’s father arrived with his son’s body at their hometown in an ambulance at 4am, an angry crowd blocked their entry into the village.

The family attempted to transport the body 40 kilometers to a small town for burial but faced opposition from a large gathering. They ultimately brought the body to a desert area on their land for burial.

During this process, the mob overpowered them, seized the body, and set it ablaze, resulting in significant damage to the remains. Relatives noted that police arrived only after the body had been burned, and they gathered for burial only once law enforcement was present.

Sindh’s Interior Minister, Zia-ul-Hassan Lanjar, has ordered an investigation into the incident.

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The circumstances surrounding Dr. Kumbhar’s death remain unclear. SSP Mirpur Khas, Asad Chaudhry, claimed he was killed in a gunfight, asserting that Dr. Kumbhar opened fire upon seeing the police and was shot by his own companion.

However, a relative disputed this account, stating that Dr. Kumbhar’s father was in police custody, with his release dependent on his son’s arrest.

They claimed the family had voluntarily surrendered Dr. Kumbhar to the police in Karachi, believing their safety was now the police’s responsibility, yet he was still killed in what they describe as a staged encounter.