A Chinese supervisor at the Dasu hydropower project in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa's Kohistan district is under police protection after workers accused him of blasphemy, officials said Monday. Blasphemy is a hugely sensitive issue in the country as even rumours of sacrilegious remarks can incite lynch mobs and deadly violence. "The Chinese national has been taken to a safe place as a precautionary measure," Muhammad Nazir, a police official in Dasu, told AFP. It is among a number of Chinese firms that have taken on infrastructure contracts in the country despite the security threats to Chinese nationals. Rights groups say hundreds of people are languishing in prison accused of blasphemy as judges delay trials, fearing retribution against themselves.

Source: The Express Tribune April 18, 2023 01:58 UTC