ISLAMABAD: Expressing grief and sadness over the brutal murder of Mashal Khan, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Saturday afternoon issued a strongly-worded condemnation and termed the lynching an act of terror.

“The state will never tolerate those who take the law into their own hands,” the premier said, urging the nation to be united in condemning this crime.

Mashal Khan, a student from Swabi, was shot and beaten to death by a violent mob on April 13 in the premises of Abdul Wali Khan University, Mardan.

The 23-year-old was accused of blasphemy by fellow students.

Eight suspects sent to police custody

An Anti-Terrorism Court in Mardan on Saturday handed eight suspects into police custody over murder charges.

According to details, eight of the arrested suspects in the murder case of Mashal Khan will be produced in the court today.

Earlier, Chief Minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) Pervez Khattak signed a summary asking Peshawar High Court (PHC) to form a judicial commission to investigate the lynching of Abdul Wali Khan University student Mashal Khan.