The vice-president of a radical Pakistani Islamist party was arrested today on charges of ordering the assassination of the chief justice because of his alleged support for the minority Ahmadi community, the authorities announced.
Zaheerul Hassan Shah was arrested a day after he told supporters of Tehreek-e-Labaik Pakistan in a video that went viral on social media that he would personally give 10 million rupees (110,000 euros) to whoever beheaded Qazi Faez Esa, the chief justice.
Qazi Faez Esa has been criticized by extremists in Pakistan in recent months after he granted bail to a blasphemy suspect from the Ahmadi minority.
The Pakistani parliament declared the Ahmadis non-Muslims in 1974. Since then, they have been repeatedly targeted by Islamic extremists, prompting condemnation from national and international human rights groups.
Zaheer Asghar, a senior police officer, told reporters that Shah was arrested in Okara, a town in the eastern province of Punjab. According to the officer, a case has been registered against Shah on charges of threatening to kill Esa and inciting violence.
Shah's party has been at the center of violent protests against any changes to Pakistan's strict blasphemy laws, which carry the death penalty.
Last week, a UN-backed panel of independent experts expressed grave concern at the rise in discrimination and violence against the Ahmadi minority community in Pakistan and urged the authorities to ensure their protection.
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