Officials want to charge dozens of rioters who ransacked a Hindu temple over the weekend with blasphemy, police said Monday. The crackdown comes a day after a mob took to the streets in Ghotki and vandalised a Hindu temple. "We have registered blasphemy cases against over 40 people for ransacking the Hindu temple," Jameel Ahmed, the region's police chief told AFP. Farrukh Ali, a senior superintendent of police in Ghotki, said authorities were conducting raids to arrest the rioters, adding local Islamic clerics were supportive of the action.

Police said they had already arrested at least three suspected attackers, while an additional 22 people have been identified after reviewing video footage of the attack. The Hindu teacher accused of blasphemy also surrendered to the police and was moved to an undisclosed location to ensure his safety.

More than 100 people were also charged with blocking highways and destroying property belonging to the area's Hindu community. Rights groups called for swift action following the incident. "Pakistani authorities must protect Ghotki's Hindu community and their places of worship," tweeted Amnesty International's South Asia branch. "The perpetrators of the attack must be held accountable and all religious minorities must be free to practice their religion without fear."

Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2019