The Peshawar High Court on Monday ordered transfer of Mashal Khan murder case from an anti-terrorism court (ATC) in Abbottabad to Peshawar ATC. The PHC chief justice approved the plea of Mashal’s father who contended the case be transferred to Peshawar as they were getting threats from the influential suspects. The case is against four suspects, including prime accused Arif Khan. The PHC had also ordered last year in July to shift the case to the Abbottabad anti-terrorism court from Mardan. Mashal’s father, Iqbal Khan, as well as the provincial government, had petitioned the PHC to move the case out of Mardan Iqbal had stated that he was facing pressure from the suspects’ families and feared the case would not get a fair trial in Mardan. In February this year, 25 accused in the case were awarded sentences of four years each, while 26 suspects were acquitted by the court over lack of evidence. On April 13, 2017, 23-year-old Mashal Khan was lynched and murdered by an angry mob at the Abdul Wali Khan University on the pretext of committing blasphemy. However, investigators found no proof of blasphemy and ruled that the murder was politically motivated. Published in Daily Times, June 5th 2018.