Silenced by Hate: The Lynching of Mashal Khan

Words by Rimsha Qasim

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This is a rare vintage poster for Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan's 1994 concert at London's most iconic venue, the Royal Albert Hall. The audience was slowly drawn in, first through the plush harmonium, beautifully played by Khan's brother, and then constant murmur of tabla and the hand claps of the group's chorus.  The night started out with one of Khan's signature songs: "Allahoo" [God Is], which is a 'hamd,' or praise song, and the traditional way of opening a qawwali performance. He ended the concert with the iconic song, "Mast Qalandar." Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan was just 48 when he died in August 1997. His music could never be constrained by borders, or stashed away in a drawer. His death sparked a global state of mourning. (Available now as print)

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Silenced by Hate: The Lynching of Mashal Khan

Mashal Khan

On April 13, 2017, a human life was subjected to extreme levels of barbarity in Pakistan; a mob of religious zealots tortured two students on the premises of Abdul Wali Khan University in the city of Mardan. Out of the two students, one was brutally beaten up and shot to death after which his lifeless body was thrown out of a dorm window. That student was 23-year-old Mashal Khan.

Mashal Khan studied Journalism and Mass Communication at Abdul Wali Khan University. He was a topper until his intermediate, after which he secured a scholarship in Moscow, and studied there for one year. Mashal wrote Pashto poetry and was known for his secular and liberal views, which were not readily accepted by the students resulting in complaints against him. A hostel caretaker said he brought up debates about taboo subjects and controversial topics. He called himself a humanist and was a bright young student who did not habitually stay silent when injustice occurred at his institute. His father, Iqbal, wanted him to become an engineer, but Mashal's dream was to work as a journalist and bring the truth to light. 

"Allah is the Greatest, and Prophet Muhammad is the messenger of God." These words were written on one of the walls of his room before it was vandalized. “In Game of Thrones, you either win or die, there is no other middle ground!,” reads another. quote on his wall. Mashal had also put up pictures of Karl Marx and Ernesto Guevara. Considering that blasphemy is a punishable crime in Pakistan, Mashal’s ruthless killing sent a wave of shock throughout the country. The state failed Khan and let mob violence prevail. The graphic specifics surrounding his lynching, the loss of human dignity, and the widespread existence of wickedness and ignorance were unsettling to anyone possessing a sense of empathy. It came to light that this tragedy happened after a religious debate in a dorm room. Some sources also claim that he supposedly posted content online that is considered blasphemous. Apart from this, the university had also suspended Mashal Khan and three other students on account of suspected blasphemous activities and formed a committee to probe into the matter. But all these allegations were proved wrong and termed baseless. Dozens of arrests took place after his death; in 2018, the man who shot him, Imran Ali, was sentenced to life imprisonment, while 25 other people were awarded a four-year jail sentence. While he was being murdered and filmed, 25 policemen were present on the campus who stated that they were unable to control the situation. On the other hand, certain sources revealed that they deliberately let the mob kill Mashal, as no action was taken until it was too late.